Manchester's COVID-19 Vaccine Numbers: How Does The Town Rate?

MANCHESTER, NJ — As the federal Centers for Disease Control changes its guidance on masking for people who are fully vaccinated, New Jersey is continuing to work to get its residents vaccinated.

The state has begun providing data on the percentages of people in each municipality who have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and how many are fully vaccinated.

In Ocean County, there have been more than 437,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines administered as of May 8. That includes the more than 100,000 doses administered by the Ocean County Health Department, which crossed the 100,000-dose threshold on May 5.

Across Ocean County, there have been 437,475 doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered as of May 8, according to the state Department of Health. There were 254,800 county residents who have received at least one dose of the vaccines, the state's COVID-19 database says, and 204,103 who were fully vaccinated as of that date.

The CDC considers people fully vaccinated:

• 2 weeks after their second shot in a 2-dose series, like the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or
• 2 weeks after a single-shot vaccine, like Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 vaccine.

You are not fully vaccinated if:

• it has been less than 2 weeks since your 1-dose shot
• it has been less than 2 weeks since your second shot of a 2-dose vaccine
• you still need to get your second dose of a 2-dose vaccine

The state has not broken down the numbers by town beyond percentages, however, Ocean County's towns are well below New Jersey's stated goal of getting 70 percent of the state's population vaccinated.

In Manchester, 42 percent of residents of all ages are fully vaccinated, with 47 percent of those 18 and over and 59 percent of those 65 or older having received their full course of the vaccines. The state data says 54 percent of Manchester residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, with 60 percent of those 18 or older and 72 percent of those 65 or older having received at least one dose.

Meanwhile in Lakehurst, 17 percent of residents of all ages are fully vaccinated, with 23 percent of those 18 and over and 57 percent of those 65 or older having received their full course of the vaccines. The state data says 25 percent of Lakehurst residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, with 35 percent of those 18 or older and 75 percent of those 65 or older having received at least one dose.

The Ocean County Health Department has been urging the county's residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The department has partnered with different municipalities to bring mini-clinics to areas where residents are limited in their ability to travel, and the department now is accepting walk-ins at the county's clinics at RWJ Barnabas Healthcare Arena, at Ocean County College and at Southern Regional Middle School in Manahawkin.

County officials are particularly interested in encouraging people who got their first shot to complete the vaccination series if they received either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

"The first dose primes your immune system. The second dose cements the protection," said Dan Regenye, the public health coordinator and health officer for the Ocean County Health Department. Skipping the second dose means the vaccines will not be as effective in preventing the spread and providing the complete protection needed against the virus that has infected nearly 65,000 people in Ocean County as of Thursday and nearly 882,000 statewide.

A recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are 64 percent effective at preventing hospitalizations in the elderly after the first dose. But they are 94 percent effective after two doses.

The second vaccine dose is also essential in preventing the creation and spread of new COVID-19 variants - a mutation of the original virus, the Ocean County Health Department said. While new variants have not yet been identified as deadlier than the original coronavirus strain, according to the CDC, they can be more contagious. This can lead to more cases, more hospitalizations and potentially more deaths, the health department said.

Ocean County has seen a steady decline in the number of new daily cases, with fewer than 100 new cases per day each day since April 30. The number of deaths has declined as well.

"These are the important figures and milestones for all of us as public health officials and for the general public," Regenye said. "It identifies that we are moving in the right direction. More people getting vaccinated and less becoming infected has been one of our biggest objectives from day one. But the job is far from finished and we still have thousands of individuals that still are in need of the vaccine."

The Ocean County Health Department has appointments and walk-in vaccination availability next week as follows:

• Monday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Ocean County College in Toms River. This is a drive-thru vaccine clinic.
• Tuesday, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Southern Regional Middle School, Manahawkin.
• Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at RWJ Barnabas Healthcare Arena in Toms River.

Appointments recommended but walk-ins are welcome. Residents can book an appointment at www.ochd.org.

To learn more about the COVID-19 vaccines, please visit www.ochd.org or call the OCHD COVID-19 Information Hotline: 732-380-5079 (local) and 833-544-0288 (toll free).

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