Kelly Hayes
Hillsborough County has officially vaccinated 302,356 individuals, according to the latest dataset released by the Florida Department of Health on Thursday.
The county crossed the marker on Wednesday, when it administered 5,466 new vaccinations. So far, 142,411 individuals have been fully vaccinated in the county, including 14,088 who have received the one-and-done Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The remaining 159,945 individuals are awaiting a second vaccine to complete the Pfizer or Moderna two-shot series.
Pinellas County is a bit behind its neighbor in the number of individuals who have been inoculated, so far having vaccinated 268,005 people. However, it actually tops Hillsborough in the number of fully vaccinated individuals, with 146,051 people who have completed their vaccination series, and only leaving 121,954 still awaiting a second dose.
On Wednesday, 6,556 people were vaccinated in Pinellas County.
The good news continues, as soon all adults in Florida will be able to get vaccinated. Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday that Floridians 40 years of age and over can qualify for the shot Monday, and all adults 18 and over will qualify on April 5.
Despite the optimism shown by the rise in vaccinations, Hillsborough County’s new COVID-19 cases are slightly higher than they have been recently.
Hillsborough County confirmed 430 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, the highest single-day caseload reported within the past two weeks.
The county’s positivity rate has also slowly creeped upward in the past week, moving steadily from 5.91% last Wednesday to 8.53% on Monday. On Thursday, the county reported a rate of 7.54%. The county has been able to maintain a rate below 10%, which health experts use as an indicator of mass community spread.
Hillsborough County reported five new deaths in the latest dataset, as well as nine additional hospitalizations. Since the start of the pandemic, the county has seen 119,339 cases of COVID-19, resulting in the death of 1,587 individuals.
Pinellas County is also seeing a slight spike in the latest report.
On Wednesday, Pinellas County confirmed 305 new cases of COVID-19 — also a highest single-day caseload within the past two weeks, in which the county had been seeing about 150-200 daily cases.
However, the county’s positivity rate remains steady, which is a good sign. Keeping with trend, Pinellas confirmed a positivity rate of 5.45% on Wednesday.
The county did report five new deaths in its latest report, and 12 additional hospitalizations. So far, 71,011 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in Pinellas County, and 1,536 have died as a result.
