WHEELING — With thousands of doses of COVID-19 vaccine at hand and a new online system to facilitate their distribution, Wheeling Hospital is asking for the community to come get their shots — especially the younger crowd.

Wheeling Hospital received 5,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine through the state’s health allotment, according to medical director Dr. Shawn Stern. The Pfizer dose, Stern said, is beneficial as it’s authorized for use on people 16 years and older, whereas Moderna, the other two-shot vaccine, is only authorized for use on 18-year-olds and older. Being able to vaccinate at a younger age, Stern said, allows them to better immunize their target group.

“With the expanded testing and vaccinations we can give now, that really helps hit a lot of extra people,” Stern said. “… This will help get some of the high school kids who would like to get the vaccine.”

Wheeling Hospital is distributing their shots at the Ohio County vaccine clinic at the Highlands, in the building which once housed a Michael’s, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Stern said that while workers are on hand during weekdays, if demand for the vaccine increases enough, they’re happy and ready to expand their working hours into the weekend.

“Right now, we’re doing Monday through Friday, but we’d do a Saturday clinic if we get the response,” he said. “… The age group we’re missing is the 25-40-year-old age group. That’s the age group we’re really hoping to hit in the next month or so,” he said.

The hospital’s self-referral system, available at www.wheelinghospital.org, allows applicants to set up their own appointments when it’s convenient for them, some in as little as 30 minutes after applying.

The 5,000 Pfizer does must be kept chilled, and if not used this week, Stern said the county will redistribute them to other areas in the state that have more demand among their populace.

The Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department reported 10 new COVID-19 cases in its Tuesday night update. That put the county’s totals at 4,019 positive cases and 77 related deaths.

Hancock, Brooke and Marshall counties all were green, the safest category on the Department of Health and Human Resources Tuesday COVID-19 alert map, while Ohio County was yellow, the second-safest category.

In Ohio, the Belmont County Health Department reported 5,642 cases in the county since the pandemic’s onset, with 74 hospitalizations and 107 related deaths, the latest being a man in his 50s.