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Within a matter of days, all North Carolinians ages 16 and older will be eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy K. Cohen announced late last week an accelerated time-line for vaccine eligibility, with the rest of Group 4 now eligible and Group 5 — everyone 16 and older — joining them next Wednesday, April 7.
"We are in line to open to Group 5 on April 7," Clay County Health Director Clarissa Rogers said. "We have almost made it to the bottom of our waiting list, so we are on a pretty good time frame of jumping on into those in Group 5 or maybe even a little early."
Although 16 and 17-year-olds will be eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine on April 7, those in rural areas like Clay County may have to do some traveling if they want the shots. Only the Pfizer two-dose series is currently approved for 16 and 17-year-olds. That vaccine must be kept in ultra-cold storage, which requires specialized freezers most commonly found in urban areas.
The Moderna two-dose series and Johnson & Johnson one-shot vaccine have been approved for ages 18 and older. Those vaccines have less stringent storage requirements and have typically been the primary — if not only — options available in many rural areas. Clay County Health Department is administering the Moderna shots.
"Anybody who is 18 and over who wishes to be vaccinated, call the health department and we'll get you scheduled or added to the list and scheduled very shortly after," Rogers said.
Walgreens and Ingles also offer vaccine appointments.
North Carolina's accelerated vaccine timetable comes as public officials express a mix of optimism about the vaccine rollout process and worry about a potential fourth surge in cases as states lift restrictions.
Before taking office, President Joe Biden set a goal of providing 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office. The United States hit that mark on day 58 of his Presidency. The President now aims for the country to reach 200 million shots in arms by his 100th day in office. Roughly a quarter of all North Carolinians have been fully vaccinated.
“I’m grateful for North Carolinians who are taking this seriously and getting the shot when it’s their time and I’m encouraged that North Carolina will be able to open eligibility to all adults well ahead of the President’s May 1 goal,” Governor Cooper said.
Officials fear that a combination of loosened restrictions and more contagious, deadlier variants of the virus could lead to a setback, especially among younger populations who have not yet had the opportunity to get vaccinated. According to the CDC, the number of patients aged 25-49 visiting United States emergency rooms for COVID-19 is now higher than the number of those 65 and older.
Group 4, which is now fully eligible for vaccination in North Carolina, includes additional essential workers and people living in other congregate settings such as student dormitories. Essential workers include frontline workers in a range of sectors such as construction, energy, financial services, public works and others as categorized by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Clay County Health Department reported 18 active positive cases of COVID-19 within the county as of Monday. To schedule your vaccination, call the health department at (828) 389-8052.