New Vaccine Record, Best Positivity Rate Ever Posted In County

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — About 30 percent of Prince George's County residents are fully immunized. Around 40 percent have gotten at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

Growing Vaccine Rollout

President Joe Biden hopes 70 percent of American adults will have at least one dose by Independence Day. Hogan thinks Maryland will reach that goal even sooner. Prince George's County is part of that push.

The county has posted two straight record-setting inoculation weeks. This came after Prince George's paused all Johnson & Johnson shots following six reports of rare blood clots. One of those patients is dead, and another was in critical condition, CBS News wrote.

Maryland decided to resume the J&J vaccines after they got federal clearance. The state mainly uses the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna immunizations, so the hiatus didn't derail the rollout.

Gov. Larry Hogan hopes to restore full capacity this month. The J&J inoculations began on May 3. Their return bolstered Prince George's growing vaccine effort.

As recently as two weeks ago, the county had the lowest inoculation rate in Maryland. Prince George's now ranks 19th out of the state's 24 jurisdictions.

County Executive Angela Alsobrooks reported that the county passed 250,000 fully vaccinated residents last week. She also noted that more than 354,000 locals have gotten at least one dose.

That's 49 percent of Prince Georgians who are 16 or older, Alsobrooks added. The immunization is currently only available to Marylanders in this age bracket.

Last Tuesday, Alsobrooks announced an inoculation outreach initiative to target underperforming towns. Employees will make 1.3 million calls, send 500,000 text messages and knock on 266,352 doors during the campaign.

Improving Metrics

With metrics improving, some activities are returning to Maryland. Six branches of the Prince George's County Memorial Library System recently reopened. Baltimore/Washington International Airport had its second-busiest day since the coronavirus pandemic began.

In other news, the coronavirus case rate is at its best clip since last July. The percent positivity has dipped to its lowest mark ever. And the Intensive Care Unit hospitalization count has fallen to its November 2020 level.

Last week's 602 infections are down 303 from the week prior. This was the second straight week that Prince George's posted less than 1,000 cases. Before this stretch, the county hadn't accomplished the feat since late last October.

The virus also killed 23 county residents last week, which is three 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: 29.66 percent
• Trend: Up by 3.96 percentage points
• Rank: 19th out of the state's 24 jurisdictions
• Trend: Up by three slots
• Comments: This was the most Prince George's County residents that have ever been vaccinated in a single week. This narrowly edged out the previous record set the week before. As recently as April 26, the county had the lowest immunization rate in Maryland.

All Marylanders 16 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: 40.26 percent
• Trend: Up by 2.26 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: 9.46
• Trend: Down by 4.76
• Comments: New cases fell for the fourth straight week. Before that, infections were on a four-week hike. This is the lowest clip since July 6, 2020.
• Recent High: 21.43 on April 14
• Recent Low: 9.46 on May 9
• Overall High: 58.83 on Jan. 14
• Overall Low: 7.57 on July 2, 2020

Hospitalizations

• Currently: 101
• Trend: Down by 24
• Comments: Hospitalizations declined for the third straight week. The count has dropped by 57 in that span. This is the lowest total since the week of March 7.
• Recent High: 158 in the week of April 11
• Recent Low: 101 in the week of May 2
• Overall High: 244 in the week of May 3, 2020
• Overall Low: 44 in the week of Sept. 20, 2020

ICU Hospitalizations

• Currently: 34
• Trend: Down by 8
• Comments: Intensive Care Unit hospitalizations declined for the third straight week. This is the lowest total since the week of Nov. 8, 2020.
• Recent High: 56 in the week of April 11
• Recent Low: 34 in the week of May 2
• Overall High: 75 in the week of Dec. 27, 2020
• Overall Low: 11 in the week of Aug. 2, 2020

Positivity Rate

• Currently: 3.39 percent
• Trend: Down by 1.25 percentage points
• Comments: The positivity rate fell for the fourth straight week. This is the lowest percent positivity the county has ever had during the coronavirus pandemic.
• Recent High: 6.32 percent on April 14
• Recent Low: 3.39 percent on May 9
• Overall High: 41.95 percent on May 2, 2020
• Overall Low: 3.39 percent on May 9

Total Cases And Deaths

Prince George's County's 83,912 coronavirus infections are the most in the state. The virus is blamed for the death of 1,449 county residents.

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RELATED:

• Prince George's Has Best Vaccine Week Yet; Cases Continue To Fall
• How To Get COVID-19 Vaccine In Prince George's County
• 6 Libraries Reopen, Offer Limited Service In Prince George's
• Vaccine Outreach Targets Towns With Low Immunization Rates
• BWI Has 2nd-Busiest Day In Pandemic As Airlines See Higher Demand

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.