COVID-19 dashboard updated for boosters, third doses

Published 8:00 pm Thursday, October 14, 2021

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The Virginia Department of Health has begun to add data about COVID-19 booster shots and third doses to its vaccine dashboards.

The vaccine summary and vaccine demographics dashboards now include booster/third dose information, with those numbers being grouped together because it said it is not possible to differentiate from booster shots and third doses.

The state health department also said it expects an increase in the fully vaccinated category as those who received mixed doses — one of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and one of the Moderna vaccine — are now categorized as fully vaccinated, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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The current definition of fully vaccinated is still having two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, a combination of the two or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

As of Oct. 13, more than 241,934 boosters/third doses have been reported among state residents, which is a 29% uptake rate based on about 815,000 eligible residents.

In the Western Tidewater Health District, fewer than 1% of Southampton County residents — 167 people total — have received a booster or third dose, while 1.8% of Suffolk residents (1,700), 1.9% in Franklin (149) and 2.5% in Isle of Wight County (919) have done so.

Among residents in Surry County — in the Crater Health District — 124 people have received a booster or third dose, representing 2% of its population.

Statewide, 81.3% of adults have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine as of Oct. 14, representing nearly 11 million doses, while 73.3% of them are fully vaccinated. Among all state residents, 61.6% have been fully vaccinated. In the Western Tidewater region, fully vaccinated rates among all residents range from 44.8% in Southampton to 54.8% in Isle of Wight.

Those who have not been fully vaccinated or are eligible for booster doses can go to vaccinate.virginia.gov or call 1-877-VAX-IN-VA (1-877-829-4682) to find nearby vaccination clinics.

People ages 12 and up are currently eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, and Pfizer has applied for an emergency use authorization with the Food and Drug Administration for a vaccine for ages 5 to 11.