BREAKING: Kemp Says All Georgians Over 16 Can Be Vaccinated
The news comes as Georgia reports its first case of a Brazilian variant
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) made a major announcement on Tuesday regarding the state’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution.
The governor announced that all Georgians over the age of 16 will be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine effective this Thursday, March 25.
The expansion is sure to create a rush to snag available appointments. Most pharmacies, clinics and other vaccine sites in the metro Atlanta area have not had any available appointments for several weeks. Demand has been lower in the state’s smaller counties, particularly south of Macon.
Kemp himself acknowledged that appointments will likely fill up once they are available online, which is why he urged Georgians to pre-register as soon as possible. He also said that while Georgia ranks 49th out of all 50 states in vaccine doses shipped per 100,000 residents, the state still ranks 12th for total doses administered. As of Tuesday, over 3.2 million doses have been administered in the state.
Georgia’s COVID-19 case numbers have declined in recent weeks. A daily report from the Georgia Department of Public Health finds the state’s seven-day moving average at 1,074 as of Tuesday afternoon, continuing a steady and downward trend in the month of March. For context, it was as high as 7,384 in January. Hospitalizations are also on the decline, with 1,212 Georgians currently in the hospital with the virus.
The state reported its first case of a Brazilian COVID variant this week. News outlets say that the variant was uncovered in Newton County, which is about 35 miles east of Atlanta. The patient’s age and gender have not been disclosed, but health officials have warned that this new variant is more contagious and could reinfect people who have previously recovered from the virus.
Georgia also continues to rank far behind of the rest of the country in vaccination rates. Data from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) finds that Georgia ranks 51st — behind all 49 other states plus Washington, D.C. — in terms of the number of residents who have received at least one dose. 19.4% of all Georgians have received at least one dose, whereas nearly 25% of the entire country has received at least one dose.
In a jam-packed Tuesday press conference, Gov. Kemp highlighted the fact that nearly three quarters of all seniors in Georgia received at least one dose of the vaccine. He also noted that his wife, First Lady Marty Kemp, has been vaccinated. He says he will be traveling to Waycross, Georgia on Friday to receive his vaccine.
“This is our ticket back to normal,” Kemp said. “We’re getting closer to that point every day.”
If you would like to register for the vaccine, please visit vaccinefinder.org and enter your ZIP Code to find an available appointment near you. The best time to register will be the moment the appointments go live, which is Thursday at midnight.
I myself will be receiving my first dose of the Moderna vaccine on Wednesday. Be on the lookout for my experience in Friday’s newsletter.