The Delaware Public Health District will have three upcoming clinics for those who wish to receive the COVID-19 (coronavirus) vaccine, according to a Facebook post Tuesday.
The first is from 5:30-6:30 p.m. June 8 at the Common Ground Free Store, 193 E. Central Ave. in Delaware. The second is June 9 from 9:30-10:30 a.m., also at Common Ground. The third is June 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Juneteenth Festival in Blue Limestone Park, 6 King Ave. in Delaware. Walk-ins are welcome.
Individuals may preregister for these clinics at DelawareHealth.org/covid-19vaccine or by calling the DPHD at 740-368-1700. The district offers vaccinations for the homebound, as well as workplaces that employ 50 or more. Individuals can even get free rides to and from the appointments using Delaware County Transit by calling 740-363-3355.
The average new cases per day per 100,000 population has fallen to five, the health district reported last week.
“As a reminder, fully vaccinated people that come in contact with a COVID-19 case do not need to quarantine,” DPHD said in its weekly update.
To clear up what may be a point of confusion, the DPHD noted, “While the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) said on (May 13) that masks and social distancing are no longer necessary for people who have been fully vaccinated, they also stated that these new directives do not override any existing state and local guidelines, including those of individual businesses and workplaces.”
In the state of Ohio, that means “the Ohio Department of Health will remove most pandemic health orders on June 2. ODH set this timeline to allow any Ohioan who has not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine to obtain one to protect themselves and others before the lifting of coronavirus mitigation protocols.”
Those health orders include face coverings, social distancing and capacity restrictions. However, they will remain for nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
As an incentive to get more people vaccinated, Gov. Mike DeWine announced a series of statewide drawings administered by the ODH with assistance from the Ohio Lottery Commission. Eligible Ohioans under 18 can win a full-ride scholarship to any Ohio state college or university, and those 18 or older can win in the Vax-A-Million.
Delaware has the highest percentage of its population started on the vaccine, said the Ohio Department of Health. There are 123,365 residents who have started on the vaccine, or nearly 59% of the population.
Delaware County also has the highest vaccination completion rate among Ohio’s 88 counties. Delaware has 109,433 people who have completed the vaccine, or 52% of its population. No other county in the state has even reached 50%.
By comparison, the Ohio Department of Health’s COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard said 5.3 million Ohioans, or 45% of the population, has started on the vaccine. Statewide, 4.6 million have completed the vaccine, or 40% of the population.
On May 30, the CDC’S Vaccine Data said 294.9 million vaccine doses have been administered in the United States, and 366.3 million doses have been distributed.
