Hillsborough County Reports 73,800 Vaccinated With 2nd Dose

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FL — One year after the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in Hillsborough County, the total number of local cases has reached 111,990, more than 1,520 people have died and the positivity rate continues to hover around 8 percent, health officials told Hillsborough County commissioners this week.

The county’s COVID-19 dashboard shows that more than 73,800 people have been fully vaccinated with both their first and second doses.

This number will climb higher now that supplies of the vaccine are increasing, multiple government-run vaccination clinics are now open, and the state has expanded eligibility to additional groups, Hillsborough County Emergency Management Director Tim Dudley told commissioners.

On Wednesday, the federal government opened a walk-up site at the Tampa Greyhound Track on Waters Avenue, and will be operating two “spoke” locations in Progress Village and Brandon. The state moved its drive-thru vaccination site from the University Square mall to a larger location near Raymond James Stadium. And Hillsborough County reopened drive-thru sites at the Vance Vogel and Ed Radice sports complexes.

For complete information on where vaccines are available in Hillsborough County and eligibility/appointment requirements for the public sites, click here.

Also at this week's commission meeting, Dr. Douglas Holt, director of the Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County, told commissioners that Super Bowl LV was not a “superspreader” event.

DOH-Hillsborough carried out enhanced surveillance before, during and after the Super Bowl. A slightly higher COVID-19 positivity rate in the Tampa Bay area suggests that most transmissions were due to private gatherings in homes or at unofficial events at bars and restaurants, Holt said.

The commission extended the state of local emergency through March 11. This includes the mandatory face mask rule inside businesses and other public buildings.