CHARLOTTE, N.C. —  As of this week, anyone 16 and older in North Carolina can get the COVID-19 vaccine.

A Charlotte pharmacy is making sure patients in some of the hardest hit communities are able to get their shots. Dr. Martez Prince opened Premier Pharmacy and Wellness Center five years ago with a passion for serving the community.

“Our patients become our family here at Premier. So everyone is like our grandmother, our grandad, our aunt, our uncle,” he says.

When the COVID-19 vaccine was first rolled out, Dr. Prince says he heard and saw concerns from patients.

“Especially at the rate and how fast everything was going with the vaccine, there was a lot of alarm going off,” he says. “People were very hesitant at first.”

Dr. Prince says when it comes to getting the vaccine to some of the hardest hit communities, it helps when people share their own experiences.

“We have patients ask us if it’s okay for them to take a selfie, take pictures or to record their vaccine experience,” he says. “That’s because they want to capture it and share it with their family, because they’re encouraging their family to get vaccinated.”

Cameo Mannix, one of the patients at the pharmacy, says for her, it’s important to go to a pharmacy where she feels she’s represented.

“I am very big on for us, by us. So, I found that this was one of the closest Black-owned pharmacies in the area, so I decided to come here,” Mannix says.

Mannix admits she questioned getting the vaccine.

“At first I was pretty reluctant. But then I just realized that I needed to do my part to try to slow the spread.”

Dr. Prince says his pharmacy has helped vaccinate more than 3,000 people. You can register to get a vaccine on the pharmacy’s website.