COURT HOUSE – While awaiting the state’s vaccination program to kick into high gear, the Cape May County Covid reports show numbers that maintain the active case total at roughly 600 individuals.
The new case totals in the county are climbing in tandem with the ability of county officials to move an almost equivalent number of individuals from quarantine.
This week (Jan. 12-18), 401 new resident cases were reported, and 394 individuals moved off quarantine. The number of active cases stands at 599.
The week saw four Covid-related fatalities, three community-based and one associated with a long-term care facility. The county total of confirmed Covid fatalities since March is 152.
Cape Regional Medical Center has 19 Covid patients, two of which are in intensive care. The numbers represent a slight decrease from a Jan. 9 report, which showed 21 Covid patients and five in intensive care.
The county’s vaccination program is making use of the state’s online registration system, which appears to be working as intended. County residents not included in the priority groups but who are eligible under the expanded parameters announced this week are beginning to get their email notifications.
Going to the online registration site and signing up is the best first step for county residents (https://covidvaccine.nj.gov/).
Confusion
The state’s goal remains to vaccinate 70% of the adult population in six months. Much will have to change if the goal is to be met.
According to the state’s vaccine dashboard, as of Jan. 17, 366,010 doses of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine were administered. The process began Dec. 15.
Vaccinating 70% of the adult population would involve inoculating 4.7 million individuals twice. The daily rate would have to be several times what it has been since the vaccination program began.
The tracking numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the New York Times note New Jersey received 658,800 doses to be distributed, meaning almost half of the doses have not been administered.
Cape May County had the highest number of administered doses per 100,000 of the population of any county in the state. It is also a leader in the number of second shots administered per 100,000 of the population. As of Jan. 18, the state dashboard reports 5,253 doses administered in the county.
In weekly calls with municipalities, county officials pointed to the fact that they are getting only about 25% of the doses necessary to roll out the vaccination program to the population the state is including as eligible. The county’s effort will require a higher allocation of doses now that those over 65 are eligible.
Gov. Phil Murphy said that what appears to be a high number of doses sitting in freezers are targeted for imminent use. Delays in getting the pharmacy program up and running for vaccinations at long-term care facilities meant that doses were held back for that purpose. Meanwhile, Murphy expressed frustration with the program’s slow rollout.
At his press conference this past week, Murphy said the state is ready to move ahead with “an aggressive expansion of our vaccination efforts.” At the same time, he continued to indicate that the state was not getting the doses needed from the federal distribution program.
Uncertain availability of doses and schedules, glitches with the startup of the pharmacy program signed onto by a majority of the states and staffing issues at many of the vaccination sites across the state add up to confusion. The logistics of this massive vaccination program are proving challenging.
In the county, the vaccination program appears to be running efficiently with the available doses. Health officials established a vaccination site at the Avalon Community Center, which is up and running.
The county plans to open a second site soon. The numbers that can be vaccinated will depend on the distribution of the vaccine supply.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.
