‘The pandemic is not over’ says County Executive Gardner.
County Executive Jan Gardner
Frederick, Md. (KM) “The news is grim” when it comes to COVID-19 infection rates in Frederick County. That’s according to County Executive Jan Gardner. She says the number of cases is increasing, and the positivity rate is going up. “While, we do not have updated case statistics, we know that the virus is moving quickly through our community,” says Gardner. “We know this because we’ve seen a major spike in the number of patients with COVID who are being hospitalized at Frederick Health Hospital, and certainly this is true of hospitals across the state.”
As of Thursday, December 23rd, the County Health Department says 11 individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19 in the ICU at Frederick Health Hospital, and 50 are in acute care beds.
Gardner also says many of these COVID patients at Frederick Health Hospital are unvaccinated. “So let’s be clear: the pandemic is not over; much as we want it to be over, it is not over,” she says. “Unvaccinated people are dying in our community and at our hospital, and many other people are becoming seriously ill. Patients are younger, and people are certainly out there fighting for their lives.”
She continues to urge residents who are unvaccinated to get the jab. “A winter surge is preventable if everyone gets vaccinated, gets boosted, utilizes testing, wears the mask at indoor public places and follows health advisories,” says Gardner.
The Health Department says, as of Thursday, December 23rd, 67.5% of Frederick County residents are fully vaccinated. It also says 67.7% have received their first doses, and 60.7% have been administered their second doses. 6.8% have received the one-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine.
The agency lists other statistics: 22.8% of children in Frederick County 5-11 years old have been fully vaccinated; 71.0% of the population between 12 and 17 have been fully vaccinated; 81.9% of Frederick County population 12 years and older have been fully vaccinated, along with 83.0% of Frederick County’s population 18 and older; and 94.3% of residents 65 and older have been fully vaccinated.
Anyone who needs to be vaccinated can call 1-855-634-6829 Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM utnil 8:00 PM. They can schedule an appointment at a clinic, schedule an in-home appointment, arrange for a Lyft ride to a vaccination clinic.
Marylanders age 5 and older are eligible to get vaccinated. They can only get the Pfizer vaccine, and each child must be accompanied by an adult when getting COVID shot.
By Kevin McManus