Tredyffrin Township: Covid-19 Vaccine Update - April 20, 2021

Press release from the Tredyffrin Township:

04/20/2021 8:37 AM

The following is an update on the COVID-19 vaccine program, from the Chester County Health Department, as of Friday, April 16, 2021.
 
The Numbers
According to the PA Department of Health, as of April 16th, 111,737 people in Chester County have been partially vaccinated, and 115,277 people have been fully vaccinated. 

That means that 227,014 people in Chester County have received at least the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.  

Included in that number are 58,869 people who have been partially vaccinated by the  Health Department, and 38,964 people who have been fully vaccinated by us. 
 
That means that the Chester County Health Department, as a single vaccine provider, has administered 45% of the total vaccine in Chester County.

As of April 16th, 54% of Chester County residents eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine have now been partially or fully vaccinated. A further 54,000+ people are scheduled with the Health Department to receive the vaccine.

Over the past week, the Chester County Health Department received a total of 21,550 vaccine doses.  Specifically:

• Moderna - 10,000 first and second doses
• Pfizer - 5,850 first and second doses
• Johnson & Johnson - 5,700 doses (currently being paused for use – see below)

Eligibility for high school and college students
Now that everyone age 16 and over is eligible to schedule an appointment for the COVID-19 vaccine in Chester County, we encourage everyone to do so! This includes college students eligible for all vaccines (if 18 or older) and high school students age 16 or 17, who can receive the Pfizer vaccine. 
 
Pausing on administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine
Earlier this week, following guidance from federal and state health agencies, the Chester County Health Department paused the administration of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. This pause is now scheduled to remain in place, per the PA Department of Health statewide order, until at least April 24.
 
When the pause on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was directed, the Chester County Health Department offered the Moderna vaccine to everyone who was scheduled to receive the J&J vaccine.  We will continue to administer the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines at the clinics that are currently operating. If the pause in the J&J vaccine goes beyond April 24, we will continue to adjust the timing for our J&J sites until a decision, or guidance is provided from the federal and state health agencies. 
 
The pause on administration of the J&J vaccine came after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended holding back on the vaccine while it investigates a “rare and severe” type of blood clot that developed in six J& J vaccine recipients – all women between the ages of 18 and 48. The six reported cases were among more than 6.8 million J&J doses administered in the U.S.

We recommend that anyone who has received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and develops severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain or shortness of breath within three weeks of their vaccination should contact their health care provider.

This press release was produced by the Tredyffrin Township. The views expressed here are the author’s own.