COVID vaccine live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Sept. 1
Click here for updates for Sept. 2.
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and vaccines in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
61 COVID-related deaths added
At least 1,220,902 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus, and at least 14,529 have died since March 2020, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday reported 7,248 new COVID-19 cases, up from 5,351 on Tuesday.
Sixty-one new coronavirus-related deaths were added on Wednesday. The state health department doesn’t specify the dates on which newly reported deaths occurred.
At least 3,757 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Wednesday, health officials said, including 926 patients being treated in intensive care units. Tuesday’s coronavirus-related ICU patient count had been the highest reported since the start of the pandemic, The News & Observer reported.
As of Monday, the latest date with available information, 13.8% of coronavirus tests were reported positive. Health officials say 5% or lower is the target rate to slow the spread of the virus.
Roughly 66% of adults in North Carolina have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and about 61% have been fully vaccinated. State officials round vaccination numbers to the nearest whole number.
NC DMV suspends Saturday hours to curb spread
The North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles is temporarily suspending its Saturday hours to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
At least 16 DMV offices, including two in Charlotte and one each in Durham, Raleigh and Huntersville, are affected by the change, The News & Observer reported. Those offices typically see walk-in customers from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays, which can get crowded.
Questions remain about COVID vaccine booster shot
An infectious disease expert at Duke University said there is still some confusion among scientists about the timing and urgency surrounding booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine.
There is still more data needed to see when people who have already been vaccinated and don’t have underlying health conditions should get the shot, Dr. Cameron Wolfe told The News & Observer.
“So when we talk about boosting for individuals in the general community, I want to be very clear that that is far less important than still reaching those individuals who are not yet vaccinated at all,” Wolfe said. “We need to continue to talk to those individuals about safety data and how robust it is and about the profound difference in their risk of hospitalization and death by the single act of getting vaccinated.”
NC school test results are in
State test results released at Wednesday’s State Board of Education meeting show just 45.4% of public school students in grades K-12 passed state reading, math and science exams last year.
In the 2018-19 school year, about 58.8% of students passed their state exams, The News & Observer reported.
Education leaders, however, have urged against comparing students’ learning experience last year given the limited amount of in-person instruction most received because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We’re still in a pandemic and these results allow the board and DPI and local districts and charter schools to determine the extent of learning in the prior year and to plan appropriately for student learning this school year,” state board chair Eric Davis said Wednesday. “These results show the resilience of our students and the dedication of our teachers and others to persevere despite many disruptions to learning.”
In Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, test scores were slightly below state levels — about 44.6% of K-12 students in all subjects passed the exams, The Charlotte Observer reported.
Pandemic delays opening of new NC hospital
The opening of a new Triangle-area hospital has been pushed back due to COVID-19.
UNC Rex Holly Springs, previously set to open its doors this month, is now scheduled to do so in November. The delay allows the health care provider to keep its staff at the main Raleigh campus.
“This was a difficult decision, but we need all hands on deck to respond to the rapid surge of COVID patients,” Ernie Bovio, president of UNC Rex, said in a statement.
Roughly 40% of the more than 400 people set to work at the Holly Springs facility will come from the Raleigh hospital.
NC bill could slow COVID-related rent relief, official says
A bill that calls for allowing North Carolina landlords to seek rent relief for their tenants could make the process go slower, a state official said.
If it becomes law, HB110 would allow landlords who lost money during COVID-19 to apply for assistance from the North Carolina’s Housing Opportunities and Prevention of Eviction (HOPE) program. Laura Hogshead, who leads the program, said the proposed law would create delays because the applications would go from landlord to tenant, instead of just one person.
“This will slow the process down,” Hogshead said.
The bill is set to go to the Senate Rules Committee before it could head to the full Senate, The News & Observer reported Wednesday.
Wake could ease eligibility for student athletes
The Wake County School Board’s policy committee expressed support for a proposal Tuesday that would temporarily ease athletic eligibility rules to let more students play sports.
One of those rules requires students to have been in attendance for at least 85% of the previous semester, The News & Observer reported. In requesting to waive that rule, district administrators pointed to students who had more absences because of COVID-19 quarantines or trouble connecting to online classes.
“We want to offer grace and flexibility to students who may have had issues with attendance during the spring semester,” Eric Fitts, Wake’s senior director for middle school programs, told the committee Tuesday.
The school board is scheduled to vote next week on waiving the attendance requirement.
Triangle schools report active COVID clusters
A new report from the state health department shows active COVID-19 clusters at 17 schools in the Triangle — including 11 in Wake County, three in Durham County, and one each in Granville, Harnett and Johnston counties.
At least three schools in Wake County have more than 20 coronavirus cases, The News & Observer reported.
Charlotte doctors push for vaccinations
Doctors in the Charlotte area have renewed their push for people to get vaccinated amid an influx of hospitalizations, The Charlotte Observer reported.
About 92% of patients in the intensive care units at Novant Health hospitals are unvaccinated, according to Dr. David Priest, Novant’s chief safety, quality and epidemiology officer. Of those on ventilators, Priest said 94% are unvaccinated.
“This remains a COVID surge of the unvaccinated spilling into the vulnerable vaccinated,” he said.
The average age of an unvaccinated patient in the hospital with COVID-19 is 49 — much younger than earlier in the pandemic, The Observer reported. The average age of someone who has been vaccinated and ends up in the hospital is 78.
NC districts temporarily move to remote learning due to COVID
Two school districts are the first in North Carolina to transition to remote learning due to the delta coronavirus variant.
The Graham and Mitchell County school systems, both in the western part of the state, will temporarily stop in-person classes.
This week, the two districts also approved requiring face masks when students go back into school, The News & Observer reported.
UNC reports more COVID clusters
Coronavirus clusters were reported on Tuesday in three residence halls at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“There are five or six cases on the 3rd floor of Ehringhaus dorm, the 7th and 8th floors of Hinton James dorm and the 3rd floor of Parker dorm,” The News & Observer reported.
The cases were reported after the university last week said it started testing students “out of an abundance of caution” in residence halls that had been linked to several COVID-19 infections.
This semester, UNC reported its first cluster of cases one week before the start of school. Recent COVID-19 metrics led some students to be concerned about access to tests over the weekend.
This story was originally published September 1, 2021 at 7:13 AM.
