County hits 12% of residents partially vaccinated for COVID-19

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, March 10, 2021

SALISBURY — At least 12% of people who live in Rowan have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to data updated Tuesday from the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.

The percentage represents 17,026 people who have been at least partially vaccinated. Additionally, 11,420 people, or 8%, have been fully vaccinated. Partial vaccinations count one shot for two-dose vaccines while full vaccinations involved people who have received both doses of a two-dose shot and one shot from the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

In addition to its regular update, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday added new demographic data for vaccines to include a running total for gender, age, race and ethnicity.

The most up-to-date demographic data for partial vaccinations in Rowan County are as follows:

• 14.4% of women and 9.5% of men have received at least one dose.

• 48% of those 75 years and older, 45% of those 65 to 74, 8.7% of those ages 50 to 64, 5.4% of those ages 25 to 49 and 2.1% of those ages 18 to 24 have received at least one dose.

• 12.7% of non-Hispanic residents in the county and 2.6% of Hispanic residents have received at least one dose.

• 12.4% of white, 7.9% of Black, 8.7% of Asian or Pacific Islander and 4.6% of American Indian or Alaskan Native Rowan residents have received at least one dose.

Because the vaccination numbers do not include people vaccinated through the Salisbury VA or federal government’s long-term care program, the number reported by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services may be lower than the actual ones.

The state only reported 17 new positives in Rowan County on Tuesday. In the continuation of an improving trend, there were only 997 cases reported across North Carolina on Tuesday. Both represent the lowest positive results in several months.

There have been just 476 positives in the previous two weeks in the county, according to state data. That’s better per 100,000 residents than Stanly County and another sign of a continued improvement in cases, but it’s also worse than other neighboring counties. Rowan County’s number of positives translates to 330 cases per 100,000 residents. Cabarrus County, by comparison, has seen 308 positives per 100,000 residents.

There were no new COVID-19 deaths reported Tuesday in Rowan County. There have been 291 deaths since the start of the pandemic and 118 since the start of the year, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

In Rowan County’s region, there were 251 people hospitalized with COVID-19 on Tuesday, including 34 hospitalized with the coronavirus in the previous 24 hours.