Submitted by the Whatcom County Health Department
As of April 24, 42.46% of Whatcom County residents have gotten their first dose, and more than a quarter (29.46%) are fully vaccinated!
From April 18-24, providers in Whatcom County administered more than 13,000 initial doses! This week, Whatcom County providers are due to receive 5,310 first doses and 3,440 second doses.
See the graphic below for more local vaccine data.
Community Vaccination Center Update
This week, the CVC will begin hosting regular weekday COVID-19 vaccination clinics, in addition to our weekend clinic. The clinics will be held every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, beginning this Thursday, April 29. Tuesday and Thursday clinics will run in the evenings, while Saturday clinics will run during the day.
Registration is now open for this week’s clinics on Thursday and Saturday. This week, the CVC’s Thursday clinic on April 29 will run from 6-8 p.m, and 240 doses of Moderna will be available for those needing their first shot. An additional 480 first doses will be available at the Saturday clinic on May 1, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Anyone over the age of 18 can make an appointment for these clinics.
For scheduling instructions and directions, go to VaccinateWhatcom.org.
Weekly Vaccine MythBusted: I already had COVID-19, so I don’t need to get vaccinated.
While it’s true that surviving COVID-19 does provide some natural immunity, that doesn’t mean you should skip out on vaccination. The amount of immunity provided after infection varies in both strength and duration. Current evidence suggests that the risk of reinfection, although uncommon in the first few months after, may increase with time. Getting vaccinated for COVID-19 greatly reduces your chance of reinfection.
You shouldn’t get vaccinated immediately after recovering from COVID-19, but you should still get vaccinated after you’ve met the criteria for discontinuing isolation, or longer depending on the kind of treatment you received. Talk to your doctor if you are unsure what treatments you received for COVID-19 or if you have more questions about getting a COVID-19 vaccine.
J&J Vaccine Update
On Friday, April 23rd, the CDC & FDA announced the lift of the pause on the administration of the Johnson and Johnson (Janssen) vaccine.
The two agencies have determined the following:
- Use of the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine should be resumed in the United States.
- The FDA and CDC have confidence that this vaccine is safe and effective in preventing COVID-19.
- The FDA has determined that the vaccine’s known and potential benefits outweigh its known and potential risks in people 18 and older.
- At this time, the available data suggest that the chance of the rare blood clots combined with low platelet counts occurring is very low, but the FDA and CDC will remain vigilant in continuing to investigate this risk.
- Health care providers administering the vaccine and vaccine recipients or caregivers should review the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine Fact Sheet for Healthcare Providers Administering Vaccine (Vaccination Providers) and Fact Sheet for Recipients and Caregivers. These fact sheets have been revised to include information about the risk of this rare side effect
For more information about the J&J vaccine in Washington, you can read DOH’s latest blog post or visit their website.
More Information
More information about the COVID-19 vaccine, vaccine planning, and vaccine safety can be found on the DOH’s COVID-19 vaccine web page at www.covidvaccinewa.org. For information about COVID-19 vaccination in Whatcom County, visit our webpage at www.whatcomcounty.us/covidvaccine.
