TOPEKA, Kan. – On Thursday, Douglas County surpassed 100,000 in the number of the COVID-19 vaccine doses administered. Of those 100,000 doses, data from local health organizations showed that more than 54,000 were first doses.
Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health reported that 54,719 first doses and 46,064 second doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered. That’s an increase of 461 first doses and 1,140 second doses since the county last reported vaccine distribution information to the Journal-World on May 7.
Douglas County has seen a decreasing demand for COVID-19 vaccinations. The most recent vaccine distribution data shows the smallest increase the county has had since it began reporting vaccine distribution information to the Journal-World on Feb. 12. Previously, the fewest number of first doses administered in a week was 521, which occurred last week.
But on Thursday, Douglas County also began offering the COVID-19 vaccine to a new age group, those between 12 and 15 years old. On Wednesday, federal health advisers endorsed the use of the Pfizer vaccine in younger adolescents. Previously, the Pfizer vaccine was available to those 16 and older.
Thursday’s vaccine distribution data shows that local organizations have administered 54,719 of the 66,986 first doses they have received, or around 81.7%. The four organizations have also administered 46,064 of the 51,385 second doses they have received, or around 89.6%.
With both first and second doses, Douglas County organizations had administered 100,783 total doses as of Thursday. That’s an increase of 1,601 doses since data was last reported on May 7.
As of 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, 56,125 Douglas County residents had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. That’s an increase of 230 residents since Monday.
Douglas County is currently the second most vaccinated county in Kansas against COVID-19, following Marshall County. According to KDHE’s dashboard, as of Wednesday at 12:30 p.m., 459 out of every 1,000 Douglas County residents had received at least one dose. Additionally, 546 out of every 1,000 residents who were eligible for a vaccine had received at least one dose.
The number of doses administered in Douglas County and the number of Douglas County residents who have been vaccinated are slightly different. Occasionally, people are vaccinated in counties other than their counties of residence, because of work or school.
In Kansas, the vaccine is currently available to everyone 12 and older. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are recommended for those 18 and older. The Pfizer vaccine is recommended for those 12 and older.
Registration for all of the health department’s vaccination clinics are open to the public, and registration codes are posted at LDCHealth.org/COVIDVaccine and Douglascountyks.org/Coronavirus. Community members may also get a vaccine at LMH Health without making an appointment.
Other vaccine distributors in Douglas County include: Jayhawk Pharmacy in Lawrence; AuBurn Pharmacies in Baldwin City and Eudora, CVS, Dillons, Hy-Vee, Medical Arts Pharmacy, Orchards Drug, Sigler Pharmacy, Walgreens and Walmart.
People who have questions about COVID-19 or the vaccination process can call the county’s COVID hotline at 785-864-9000 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
15 new cases in county
Douglas County reported 9,279 cases of COVID-19 as of Friday, an increase of 15 cases since Wednesday.
In Douglas County, 9,128 of the 9,279 cases are inactive or beyond the infectious period, meaning 151 cases are active.
The county has averaged about five new cases per day over the last 14 days, according to a 14-day moving average graph updated weekdays by the health department. The current average of 5.29 cases is the lowest average the county has seen since June and is down from a recent high of nine cases per day in April.
Douglas County has a 14-day COVID-19 incidence rate of 61.52 per 100,000 people and a test positivity rate of 1.8%. Positivity rates are 2% in Lawrence, 0.7% in Eudora and 0% in Baldwin City and Lecompton. One patient at Lawrence’s hospital had COVID-19 on Friday, the same number as Wednesday. To date, 87 Douglas County residents have died from COVID-19.
