(Updated at 11 a.m.) COVID-19 vaccinations have reached a new peak in Arlington, but the effort has led to lines at one county vaccination site.
Nearly 5,000 doses have been administered in Arlington over the past four days, according to Virginia Dept. of Health data. The seven-day trailing average of doses administered is now just shy of 900 per day, a new record for the county.
(Updated 4 p.m.) Officials with Arlington County Public Health Division say they are not wasting coronavirus vaccine doses, but they also do not condone people getting vaccinated out of turn.
During a COVID-19 work session on Tuesday, County Board members told health division staff that their constituents frequently express concerns about line-jumping by those who do not currently qualify for vaccinations under Virginia Dept. of Health’s Phase 1b guidelines.
The coronavirus continues to circulate in Arlington, as vaccinations continue at a moderate pace.
The latest data from the Virginia Dept. of Health, as of Feb. 1, shows a pace of infections that is down from last month’s peak, but remains elevated compared to the relatively quiet summer and early fall.
Two hundred people have died from COVID-19 in Arlington, according to the latest figures from the Virginia Dept. of Health.
One new fatality was reported today. Four have been reported over the past week. In all, 725 people have been hospitalized in Arlington as a result of a COVID-19 infection, according to VDH, out of 11,555 total confirmed cases.
(Updated 4:30 p.m.) Arlington County officials are acknowledging the fear, anger and frustration people feel and are asking for patience as vaccine plans change.
During the County Board meeting on Saturday, board member Libby Garvey said the state and federal governments are “moving the goalposts, changing the rules and switching out equipment.” County Manager Mark Schwartz said that in the distribution process, “chaos is reigning.”
The good news is that coronavirus cases are on a downswing in Arlington.
On Sunday, the seven-day trailing average of new daily cases in the county hit 67.4, the lowest point since Dec. 5. It rose slightly today, as 120 new local cases were reported by the Virginia Dept. of Health.
Pandemic-related data trends in Arlington are pointing in a positive direction, at least for now.
As of Tuesday morning, the average daily rate of new cases is 94, compared to a local pandemic peak of 123.4 average daily cases one week ago. Since Saturday, 340 new cases have been reported.
Acknowledging that “many residents are frustrated,” Arlington officials on Friday urged patience with the county’s vaccine distribution, while calling on the state for more doses.
The county has been facing scrutiny for what some see as a slow rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine, despite receiving the first vaccine shipment before Christmas.
Arlington health officials are working to ramp up the pace of vaccinations, but the effort to vaccinate Arlington Public Schools staff has hit a snag.
School staff are set to receive a COVID-19 vaccine as part of Phase 1b of Virginia’s vaccination effort. But in a memo to APS employees this morning, Superintendent Francisco Durán acknowledged “frustration” over “technology issues [staff] encountered with the appointment process.”
(Updated at 11:45 a.m.) Arlington County Board members are asking why vaccinations are not going faster, amid a pace that would take more than two years to dose the county’s adult population.
This past weekend the county got the go-ahead from the state to start vaccinating those in the Phase 1b priority group. But questions remain about how exactly the county will push forward and why less than 2% of the county’s adult population has received a vaccine dose so far, one month after the first vaccine was authorized for use.
Through a partnership with a California company, Arlington County will be offering no-charge, walk-up COVID-19 testing starting Wednesday.
The county announced the partnership this morning, in a press release (below). Los Angeles-based startup Curative has placed testing kiosks in two county-owned parking lots in south Arlington; both are set to open tomorrow, operating from 12-8 p.m. seven days per week.
More than 10,000 coronavirus cases have been diagnosed in Arlington since the start of the pandemic.
The county passed that milestone this morning, as 120 new cases were reported, bringing the cumulative total to 10,117.
