COVID vaccine live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Feb. 13
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and vaccines in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Case count tops 818,000
At least 818,724 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus, and 10,453 have died since March, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Saturday reported 4,130 new COVID-19 cases. ..
At least 77 additional deaths were added to the total Saturday. Deaths don’t all occur on the day the state reports them. The state health department revises its daily figures as information becomes available.
At least 2,101 people in North Carolina were reported hospitalized with the coronavirus as of Saturday, down from 2,151 on Friday and 2,185 on Thursday. Saturday’s daily count was the lowest reported since Dec. 3.
As of Saturday, 6.5% of coronavirus tests were reported positive. That was the same percentage as Wednesday, the latest previous day for which data are available. Health officials say the percentage should be about 5% or lower to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
The state reports more than 1.5 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.
Davidson College issues plea after 3 British variant COVID cases
Davidson College urged students on Friday to stop hanging out in small indoor groups without masks on, just days after reporting that three students contracted the highly contagious British variant of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
Close contacts of the three students were quarantined when the students first tested positive for COVID-19, officials said.
“Our contact tracing and quarantine has been working effectively, and many of our positive test results are coming from students already quarantined away from the rest of campus,” according to an online post by the college.
Davidson College officials said they can trace “nearly all of the viral spread to unmasked activity.”
“Very small numbers can lead to significant spread: 3 people take their masks off in a room and soon 9 people test positive and 23 people are in quarantine,” college officials said.
Small-town NC residents get vaccine quickly
Harnett Health System in Dunn, North Carolina, was able to vaccinate 1,500 people on Thursday — more than the 1,000 shots Wake County is aiming to give at Raleigh’s PNC Center.
The Harnett operation runs with 40 nursing students and volunteers in a parking lot with 100 parking spaces, The News & Observer reported. Dunn Police directed traffic, allowing patients to move through the line within 30 minutes.
Harnett Health has now vaccinated more than 10,000 people, Kelly Honeycutt, director of administrative operations, told The N&O.
At the end of the day, there’s rarely any leftover for “vaccine chasers” coming from other parts of the state.
“We don’t normally have a lot of excess,” Honeycutt said. “We have a waiting list with 100 people, and we call at the end of the day. I think it speaks a lot for our personnel, doing 1,500 a day.”
Wake draws up plans for teacher vaccination
Wake County Schools is working on a plan to vaccinate its teachers and staff as students prepare to return next week.
There are 10,700 teachers in the system and thousands of other employees who will be eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine this month, The News & observer reported. Just 614 employees were already eligible under the existing guidelines for individuals 65 and older.
“We have like a vaccine team at the leadership level at the district that is working with county health officials to make sure that we understand how to best accomplish this, whether it is school sites, an educator day or special locations or times,” Wake Superintendent Cathy Moore said at a news conference Friday at Wakefield High School in Raleigh.
The district is considering giving teachers the shots at school during the school day to keep them from missing class.
Moore also said vaccinations will not be mandatory for teachers.
UNC players won’t be suspended for maskless gathering
UNC men’s basketball coach Roy Williams said players seen gathering without masks were disciplined but not suspended.
“It was not a free-standing party at some fraternity house or in the middle of Franklin Street,” Williams said. “And I’ve handled it what I think is very appropriately.”
A video showed maskless players after a win over Duke last weekend, leading to the postponement of Monday’s scheduled game against the Miami Hurricanes.
Williams said “full personnel” will be available when his team plays Virginia on Saturday.
Vaccine hotline flooded with calls
A public health hotline and website have been swamped with people wanting to make appointments for COVID-19 vaccines in the Charlotte area.
Mecklenburg County is having technology issues after it opened a sign-up period for additional vaccine slots on Friday morning.
Now, some hotline callers are asked to leave voicemail messages, and the website is “moving slower than usual due to the high volume of traffic,” Mecklenburg County spokesperson Rebecca Carter said in a statement.
In January, the vaccine rollout was slowed down when several people called to try getting the county’s first appointment slots, The Charlotte Observer reported.
This story was originally published February 13, 2021 at 7:47 AM.
