How Many Howard County Residents Have Been Vaccinated: March 31

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Although the coronavirus vaccine has been in limited supply, as of March 31, 110,191 (33.8 percent) Howard County residents have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 63,278 people (19.4 percent) have been fully vaccinated. There have been 17,285 total coronavirus cases so far as of March 31 and there are 9,029 active cases.

The Howard County Health Department began scheduling vaccine appointments for all groups in Phase 1C March 22. All phases are eligible now to pre-register for vaccines. This week, the county received 3,100 COVID-19 vaccines.

Per the governor's guidance, Phase 1C includes:

• Adults aged 65-74
• Essential healthcare workers not in Phase 1A
• Critical manufacturing workers
• U.S. Postal Service and mass public transit workers
• Veterinarian and support staff
• Clergy/other essential staff for houses of worship
• Food/agriculture production workers
• Grocery store and food bank workers
• Certain immunocompromised individuals

Effective March 23, all residents ages 60 and older became eligible to be vaccinated. Starting March 30, all residents 16 and older who have underlying medical conditions that increase the risk for severe COVID-19 illness became eligible.

Beginning April 13, the following groups will be eligible:

• Residents ages 55+
• Workers in the following areas:

* Essential construction* Food services* Utilities* Transportation* Financial* IT workers

Beginning April 27, all residents ages 16 and older will be eligible.

Maura J. Rossman, health officer for Howard County, said March 28 that metrics have continued to trend upward. She asked people to use caution.

"Please be cautious, our COVID metrics are trending up. Today our positivity rate is 4.54 percent and our new case rate is 16 per 100,000. This uptick in cases is concerning and we must be diligent in continuing to wear facial coverings, physically distance, avoid gatherings and get tested when exposed or develop symptoms," Rossman said. "On a positive note, our vaccination rates are encouraging."

Residents in all phases who are interested in receiving the vaccine are encouraged to complete the county's vaccine interest survey at https://www.howardcountymd.gov/Departments/Health/MM-Alerts-and-Recalls/COVID-19-Vaccine.

Read more:

COVID-19 Metrics Trending Upward: How To Get The Vaccine In HoCo