The Mobile Vax initiative began on Saturday in a devastated community, starting in East Boston.

He said these groups face barriers to access to life-saving doses, such as transport problems and vaccine hesitation.Program goals Over the next two months, we plan to provide 25,000 vaccinations to residents of East Boston, Chelsea, Chicopee and Holyoke.

“This is about getting a shot in your arm,” Scott said.

The outreach effort has been approved by the state to resume the use of Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine, which was discontinued earlier this month, as authorities investigated rare reports of patients with blood clots after vaccination. It was done less than a day after that.

The number of COVID-19 vaccinations given in Massachusetts increased by 102,657 to 5,605,747, state officials reported on Saturday.

The number of new vaccinations was less than on Friday when 106,038 were reported.

The agency also reported 1,386 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the state to a total of 639,314 cases. The ministry also reported 12 newly confirmed coronavirus deaths, bringing the state to a total of 17,193.

The state said 29,717 were estimated to have potentially deadly active cases of the virus and 633 confirmed coronavirus patients were hospitalized.

On Saturday afternoon, people lined up in the park outside a coach that had been modified to function as a mobile vaccination clinic.

As the clients lined up, the workers answered their questions. On the bus, workers, including Brewster ambulance staff, assisted the process.

According to the organizers, the vaccination program administered a dose of Pfizer / BioNTech to about 500 people. People were encouraged to make reservations, but the program also accepted people who did not book shot times.

Patients who took the drug left a thank-you message on the banner at the vaccination site. The slogan printed next to the bus said, “My reason: Protect my community.”

In Boston, the Public Health Commission reported as of Friday that 1,364 people had died in the city due to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. According to the committee, Boston reported more than 68,000 cases of the virus.

The Commission reports that 34% of known cases in Boston are Caucasian and 30% are Latino and Hispanic. Black and African-American residents account for about a quarter of Boston’s cases, and an additional 6% are associated with offspring in Asia and the Pacific Islands.

White residents account for 43% of COVID-19 deaths, followed by blacks and African Americans, who account for 33% of urban pandemic deaths. Latino and Hispanic residents accounted for 13%, and Asian and Pacific Islanders accounted for 8%.

East Boston is one of the most pandemic-influenced communities.

According to Commission data, more than 19% of the approximately 39,000 tests conducted in the neighborhood have been COVID-19 positive since the onset of the health crisis last year.That positive number is higher More than twice as many places as Charlestown, South End, Jamaica Plain, etc. than any other Boston area.

Scott said on Saturday that he welcomed the news about the new availability of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. It rejoins the vaccine produced by Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech.

“These vaccines save lives,” he said.

Public health experts have repeatedly sought greater measures to help vaccinate residents of states at the highest risk of being infected with COVID-19.

Governor Charlie Baker said he was prioritizing state efforts to address vaccine hesitation, and on Thursday the government was in the process of $ 5 million in “trust the facts and get the Vax” public awareness. We started TV advertising as part of our campaign.

The new commercial, broadcast in English, Spanish and American Sign Language, will be in the summer, providing reasons for vaccination and reminding people that vaccines can save lives, the government said in a statement.

The Baker administration pointed out data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, showing that the vaccine hesitation rate was “very low,” but “the administration said that the color community and the people of the most devastated cities and towns Vaccine acceptance and access. “

Globe Correspondent Nathan Klima contributed to this report.

John Hilliard can be reached at [email protected]..