Grand Forks health officials admit there’s been a slowdown in people coming in to be vaccinated for COVID-19. At last report nearly 36% of county residents are fully vaccinated. Among those 65 and older the rate jumps to 90%. The goal is to reach 60% for so-called herd immunity.
Public Health Director Debbie Swanson says lower case counts have kept the county in the “yellow” or moderate risk level on the local dashboard for the past 20 days. Swanson says younger age groups continue to have the greatest number of positive hits. “Most new cases for the 7 day averages are in the 7-19…20-29…30-39 age groups.”
Swanson says vaccine misinformation continues to be a potential threat moving forward. “The vaccine hesitant populations are susceptible to vaccine misinformation and we have started to see a little more of that in our community.”
Mayor Brandon Bochenski says they hope to combat vaccine hesitancy with vaccine convenience.
One of those so-called pop-up events is scheduled for Thursday. Health officials will provide shots for walk-in traffic at the Empire from 3-8 p.m. Participants will see live entertainment and receive a free beverage from participating businesses.
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