Vaccine Reaches 25 Percent Of Anne Arundel As Cases Fall

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — More than a quarter of Anne Arundel County residents are fully immunized. About 40 percent have gotten at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

After setting a seven-day inoculation record, the county saw a slight setback last week. This came as Anne Arundel paused all Johnson & Johnson shots after six reports of rare blood clots. One of those patients is dead, and another was in critical condition, CBS News wrote.

The state mainly uses the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, so this won't derail the rollout, but the pace may diminish slightly. Gov. Larry Hogan hopes to restore full capacity next month.

Still, Maryland on Thursday opened a new mass vaccination site at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Hogan visited the facility the next day with Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman.

As immunizations are climbing, new infections are falling. The case rate dropped for the first time in two months. The positivity rate also dipped for the first time since early March.

The improving metrics led Annapolis to announce several springtime events and an Independence Day parade. Medieval Times, a local jousting venue, also reopened its Arundel Mills location on Thursday.

Last week's 897 cases are down 14 from the week prior. It was the 11th straight week that Anne Arundel recorded less than 1,000 new infections. Before that, the county had clocked more than 1,000 new cases per week for about three consecutive months.

The virus also killed nine county residents last week, which is four more than the week before, the Maryland Department of Health said. Here's a look at where the numbers stand in Anne Arundel County.

Full Vaccinations

• Currently: 25.93 percent
• Trend: Up by 3.69 percentage points
• Rank: 13th out of the state's 24 jurisdictions
• Trend: Improved by one slot
• Comments: The past seven days saw fewer immunizations than the week prior. The pause in Johnson & Johnson vaccines may have caused this drop.

All Marylanders 16 and up are now eligible for the inoculation. For more information on Anne Arundel County'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: 39.59 percent
• Trend: Up by 3.9 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: 22.12
• Trend: Down by 0.35
• Comments: New infections declined for the first time in eight weeks. The case rate was even higher on Wednesday when it reached 24.74. That was the highest since Feb. 4.
• Recent High: 24.74 on April 14
• Recent Low: 13.47 on Feb. 25
• Overall High: 64.99 on Jan. 12
• Overall Low: 3.53 on June 26, 2020

Hospitalizations

• Currently: 83
• Trend: Down by 3
• Comments: The 99 hospitalizations registered on Tuesday were the most since Feb. 7. Still, hospitalizations were down overall on the week. This is the first decline in three weeks.
• Recent High: 168 on Jan. 8
• Recent Low: 39 on March 8
• Overall High: 172 on April 21, 2020
• Overall Low: 21 on Sept. 21, 2020

ICU Hospitalizations

• Currently: 15
• Trend: Up by 2
• Comments: ICU hospitalizations have oscillated over the last seven weeks. They have not eclipsed 16 during this period.
• Recent High: 43 on Jan. 14
• Recent Low: 7 on Feb. 26
• Overall High: 49 on May 13, 2020
• Overall Low: 4 on Aug. 24, 2020

Positivity Rate

• Currently: 6.75 percent
• Trend: Down by 0.42 percentage points
• Comments: The positivity rate declined for the first time in seven weeks. The percent positivity reached 7.47 on April 8. That was the highest since Jan. 24.
• Recent High: 10.4 percent on Jan. 3
• Recent Low: 4.06 percent on Feb. 26
• Overall High: 28.16 percent on April 16, 2020
• Overall Low: 2.29 percent on Aug. 16, 2020

Total Cases And Deaths

Anne Arundel County's 41,386 coronavirus infections are the fifth most in the state. The virus is blamed for the death of 571 county residents.

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RELATED:

• Best Vaccine Week Yet Posted In Anne Arundel, But Shots Will Slow
• How To Get COVID-19 Vaccine In Anne Arundel County
• Anne Arundel Pauses Use Of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine
• Hogan Visits Navy Stadium Mass Vaccination Site
• Marylanders Oppose Vaccine Passports, Worry About Privacy: Survey

Have a story idea? Please contact me at jacob.baumgart@patch.com 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.