Today the Bladen County Health Department reported 362 active COVID-19 cases in Bladen County. That’s an increase of 17 cases over yesterday’s report. There have been two additional Covid related deaths in the county reported this week as well.
The local health department announced yesterday the State’s Vaccination Plan for COVID-19 has moved to the next group and they are now accepting people 65 and older. However the vaccine supplies are very limited.
Dr. Teresa (Terri) Duncan, Bladen County Health and Human Services Director asks for patience as adjustments are made to the State’s most recent vaccination plan.
One elderly lady phoned into the BladenOnline office this week to give kudos to the health department staff. She said, “The health department has it down like clock work. They got me registered and vaccinated seamlessly. I am proud to call Bladen County home.”
U.S. Congressman David Rouzer also gave a COVID-19 update this week. He said in his update yesterday, “Thanks to the success of the Trump Administration’s Operation Warp Speed, tens of thousands of doses of safe, effective COVID-19 vaccines have been delivered to the states and territories to administer. So far, more than 31.1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccines have been distributed and nearly 10.6 million Americans have received their first dose. Just under a million doses of the vaccine have been distributed to North Carolina as of this morning, and according to CDC data almost 260,000 individuals have received their initial dose.”
He added, “It is a major challenge to produce the amount of vaccine necessary for 300 million people so supplies in the initial rollout are limited, but vaccine manufacturers are continuing to ramp up production. Due to the short supply at present, many of you are finding that you have to wait for the vaccine even if you’re currently eligible. In most cases an appointment is required. You can use this page to find a vaccine provider in your home county.”
The Bladen County offices will be closed on Monday, January 18th, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The health department will reopen on Tuesday, January 19th at 8:30am.