Vaccine Reaches Nearly Half Of Prince George's; New Record Set

Bowie MD

24 May, 2021

6:07 PM

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PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — Around 36 percent of Prince George's County residents are fully inoculated. About 44 percent have gotten at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Leaders are still pushing the immunizations. Gov. Larry Hogan partnered with Ledo Pizza to offer free meals for inoculated Marylanders. The vaccines have helped slow infections around the county. Prince George's now has its lowest positivity rate ever. This progress helped the Maryland State House reopen without requiring masks. The Bowie Farmers Market also resumed. Business is similarly returning to the National Harbor, where several employers hosted a virtual job fair. Plus, Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport saw its highest daily passenger total since the coronavirus pandemic began. Despite the progress, the virus is not yet eradicated. The county is approaching 85,000 total cases and 1,500 cumulative deaths. Improving Metrics In other news, the coronavirus case rate is at its best clip in nearly 14 months. The percent positivity has dipped to its lowest mark ever. And the hospitalization count has fallen to its September 2020 level. Last week's 353 infections are down 195 from the week prior. This is the first time the county recorded less than 500 weekly cases since April 2020. This was also the fourth straight week that Prince George's posted less than 1,000 new infections. Before this stretch, the county hadn't accomplished the feat since late last October. The virus also killed eight county residents last week, which is one more than the week before, the Maryland Department of Health said. Here's a look at where the numbers stand in Prince George's County. Full Vaccinations Currently: 35.75 percentTrend: Up by 2.85 percentage pointsRank: 18th out of the state's 24 jurisdictionsTrend: Improved by one slotComments: New immunizations slowed for the second straight week and fell short of the record high, set two weeks ago. Prince George's had the lowest inoculation rate in Maryland until April 26. All Marylanders 12 and up are now eligible for the inoculation. For more information on Prince George's vaccination plan, click here. Check out our how-to guide to learn how to sign up for the shot. Head to Patch's immunization page to keep up with Maryland's latest vaccine news. At Least One Dose Currently: 44.26 percentTrend: Up by 2.14 percentage points This is the percentage of residents who have gotten at least one dose of the inoculation. The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines both require two shots. The Johnson & Johnson immunization only has one injection. Coronavirus Case Rate Currently: 5.55 Trend: Down by 3.06Comments: New cases fell for the sixth straight week. Before that, infections were on a four-week hike. This is the lowest clip since April 1, 2020.Recent High: 21.43 on April 14Recent Low: 8.42 on May 14Overall High: 58.83 on Jan. 14Overall Low: 0.5 on March 23, 2020 Hospitalizations Currently: 54Trend: Down by 23Comments: Hospitalizations declined for the fifth straight week. The count has dropped by 104 in this span. This is the lowest total since the week of Sept. 27, 2020.Recent High: 158 in the week of April 11Recent Low: 54 in the week of May 16Overall High: 244 in the week of May 3, 2020Overall Low: 44 in the week of Sept. 20, 2020 ICU Hospitalizations Currently: 23Trend: Down by 8Comments: Intensive Care Unit hospitalizations declined for the fifth straight week. This is the lowest total since the week of Nov. 1, 2020.Recent High: 56 in the week of April 11Recent Low: 23 in the week of May 16Overall High: 75 in the week of Dec. 27, 2020Overall Low: 11 in the week of Aug. 2, 2020 Positivity Rate Currently: 2.09 percentTrend: Down by 1.18 percentage pointsComments: The positivity rate fell for the sixth straight week. This is the county's lowest percent positivity ever. Recent High: 6.32 percent on April 14Recent Low: 2.09 percent on May 23Overall High: 41.95 percent on May 2, 2020Overall Low: 2.09 percent on May 23 Total Cases And Deaths Prince George's County's 84,813 coronavirus infections are the most in the state. The virus is blamed for the death of 1,464 county residents. Subscribe to your local Patch newsletter. Download our mobile application from the App Store or Google Play. RELATED: Vaccine Benchmark Nears; Prince George's Expands EligibilityHow To Get COVID-19 Vaccine In Prince George's CountyBWI Opens Upgraded Concourse; Passenger Traffic Hits Record HighBowie Farmers Market Reopens; Vendors Sell Craft ProductsState House Will Reopen To Visitors, Masks Won't Be RequiredNational Harbor Will Host Job Fair, Offer Plenty Of PositionsFree Ledo Pizza Offered To Vaccinated Marylanders Have a story idea? Please contact me at [email protected] with any pitches, tips or questions. Follow me on Twitter @JacobBaumgart and on Facebook @JacobBaumgartJournalist to stay up-to-date with the latest Anne Arundel County and Prince George's County news.