80K In Passaic Co. Are Boosted Against COVID: 3 Takeaways From The Data

PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ — Booster shots that protect against COVID-19 are now available for people 16 and older. State health officials are now pushing for people who completed their first round of COVID vaccinations to get the booster shots.

About 80,000 people in Passaic County have received an additional dose of the COVID vaccines as of Tuesday morning. Here are three takeaways from the New Jersey Department of Health's available data:

1. Many still haven't received an additional dose.

As of Tuesday morning, 330,923 people in Passaic County have completed their first round of COVID vaccinations. Only 24.4 percent of them have received an additional dose of the COVID vaccine, according to the state health department.

Children younger than 16 are still not eligible for a booster shot. But kids ages 5-15 — the youngest eligible ages for initial COVID vaccinations — represented only 6.1 percent of people in Passaic County who completed their first round of vaccinations.

Statewide, 31.4 percent of people who completed their first vaccination course have received booster shots.

2. Many younger than 50 haven't received boosters yet.

Out of the Passaic County population that completed their primary series of doses, 29.3 percent were between ages 30-49 and 17 percent were between ages 18-29.

In Passaic County, people ages 30-49 make up 21.2 percent of the population that has received an additional dose, while people ages 18-29 represent 6.7 percent.

That may change at some point, since the CDC only opened booster eligibility in November to all adults 18 and older. Health officials declared Dec. 9 16- and 17-year-olds could receive a Pfizer booster.

3. A shift in race/ethnicity demographics.

Here is the breakdown of race and ethnicity among those who received their initial COVID vaccinations:

• Asian: 5 percent
• Black: 6 percent
• Hispanic/Latino: 34 percent
• Other: 12 percent
• Unknown: 10 percent
• White: 33 percent

Here's the breakdown of those who have received a booster in Passaic County:

• Asian: 6 percent
• Black: 5 percent
• Hispanic/Latino: 20 percent
• Other: 11 percent
• Unknown: 9 percent
• White: 49 percent

The data shows a higher percentage of white people who have received a booster shot, while many in the Hispanic/Latino community have not yet received the additional doses.

It is not yet clear what percentage of each city and town has received the booster shot, as New Jersey has not yet made municipal data available for boosters. The state health department does show municipal data regarding those who have completed their first round of vaccinations, via its COVID-19 dashboard.

Thanks for reading. Have a news tip? Email josh.bakan@patch.com. Subscribe to your local Patch newsletter and follow the Wayne Patch Facebook Page.