About a week after vaccine eligibility was expanded to Hoosiers 16 and older, Health Officer Dr. William David Moore said there is now a surplus of COVID-19 vaccine that is outpacing demand in Grant County.
Moore said while the county is receiving more supply of vaccines overall, including two additional vaccine clinics opening this week at the Marion Meijer and Upland Family Pharmacy, the surplus is largely a result of younger age groups not being as eager to get vaccinated compared to older groups.
“As we’ve hit from 45 on down, the percentage has been a precipitous drop,” he said. “...We have enough for those who want to be vaccinated, it appears right now.”
EMA Director Bob Jackson said the increased supply has led to many available appointments at county vaccine clinics, and it is fairly easy to get an appointment quickly. Moore noted the new eligibility expansion removes a requirement of permanent residence in Indiana, allowing out-of-state or international students or workers to be vaccinated.
CDC recommendations state individuals who are two weeks past their second dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or their single dose of Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine do not have to quarantine or get tested for COVID if determined to be a close contact of a COVID-positive individual if they are asymptomatic, Moore said, speaking to the effectiveness of the vaccines in preventing COVID infection and transmission.
Moore said although some have expressed concern after a recent report of 15 million J&J doses being contaminated by a factory error, the fact the error was identified early in the process shows there are safeguards in place to make sure each vaccine being administered to patients is safe and effective.
Commissioner Mark Bardsley said the county, state and country are still in a race against time to get as many people vaccinated as possible as more infectious and deadly strains of COVID-19 become more prevalent.
“If you have not had that vaccine yet, we encourage you to study, to make a positive decision, and we encourage you to get that vaccine,” Bardsley said. “The more people we get vaccinated, the more we have that build up and antibodies in our system, the better we can fight any other strains that come this way.”
Bardsley said current estimates for Grant County place the population at about 50 percent herd immunity through COVID-19 infections or individuals being fully vaccinated, with health experts projecting it will take at least 70 percent herd immunity to have full control of the virus’s spread.
Grant County remains in the yellow zone of the state’s COVID-19 metrics this week, and Moore said cases, hospitalizations and positivity rates appear to be climbing across the state and country. Jackson reported lower case numbers Wednesday, and if the county continued that trend it could be back in the blue as soon as next week.
Bardsley reiterated the county is mirroring the state and has now transitioned from a mask mandate to a mask advisory, leaving the decision on requiring masks up to each private business entity. The county complex will continue to require masks for the time being, he said, with a plan for commissioners to reevaluate protocols on April 19.
“We strongly recommend that if you’re in large gatherings that you still mask up because transmission of this virus is very easy and we want to use all the protocols that we possibly can,” Bardsley said.
With the governor extending the state of emergency through at least the end of this month, Bardsley said all large public gatherings such as proms are still being held with the collaboration and guidance of the health department and Emergency Operations Center to ensure events are held safely.
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