FILE - In this Dec. 14, 2020, file photo, Sandra Lindsay, left, a nurse at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, is inoculated with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine by Dr. Michelle Chester, in the Queens borough of New York. From speculation that the coronavirus was created in a lab to a number of hoax cures, an overwhelming amount of false information about COVID-19 has followed the virus as it circled the globe over the past year. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, Pool, File)

AURORA | The Tri-County Health Department, the Aurora NAACP and the Colorado Black Health Collaborative are partnering to host the “Outsmart COVID-19 Black Health Town Hall” this Saturday.

The town hall is a virtual meeting where community members can get information about the COVID-19 vaccine and have their questions answered, according to a news release from Tri-County.

“We invite Black residents to use this opportunity to get the most current facts and have their questions answered from the expert physicians,” Tri-County director Dr. John Douglas said in the release.

The vaccination rates of Black residents in the Tri-County region have consistently lagged behind that of their white counterparts in all three counties. According to Tri-County’s COVID data dashboard, 56.3% of non-Hispanic whites have been vaccinated, but only 37.4% of Black residents and 23.5% Of Hispanics.

The town hall will be streamed over Facebook Live on Tri-County’s Facebook page at facebook.com/cotchd. 

Participants are asked to prepare their questions, which will be answered on a first-come, first-served basis, in advance. Douglas and two other doctors will be on hand to answer medical questions.

Tri-County’s COVID call center is also available to answer questions and help schedule vaccine appointments by calling 303-220-9200 Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.