'Lack Of Urgency' Emerging In Mecklenburg Vaccine Demand

MECKLENBURG COUNTY, NC — COVID-19 cases are on the rise in Mecklenburg County, as is an emerging "lack of urgency" among some in the community to get vaccinated despite increases in vaccine supply and access points, the county's top public health official said Wednesday.

"All of our metrics are beginning to increase," Mecklenburg County Health Director Gibbie Harris said Wednesday.

As of April 21, about 34 percent of Mecklenburg County residents were partially vaccinated, while nearly 22 percent of adults in the county were fully vaccinated, she said

"What we are seeing, I think, is to some extent a lack of urgency that we saw early on," Harris said of vaccinations.

Vaccination rates are lagging among younger residents in the Charlotte metro, and across the state. As of April 21, North Carolinians between the ages of 18-24 accounted for about 7 percent of those at least partially vaccinated in the state, according to North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services data.

To combat the trend, county health officials are turning to localized vaccination efforts in the community, which could include partnerships with breweries and other businesses, while also shutting down the vaccination clinic at the Bojangles Coliseum in May.

"What we're finding is that if you're readily available to them in an easy access situation, where they don't have to make an appointment, they don't have to take time off of work and drive over," there's a greater chance they'll get it, Harris said. "They're just not necessarily taking the time and the energy that it takes to get the vaccine."

County efforts to innovate reaching out to unvaccinated residents comes as state public health officials set an urgent call for at least a partial vaccination of at least two-thirds of adults in the state as soon as possible.

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Across the board, health officials are seeing a rise in case numbers, the positivity rate and hospitalizations in Mecklenburg County. The county is averaging about 269 new cases a day, and has a 7.7 percent positivity rate, Harris said. About 142 COVID patients are in county hospitals.

"All of those are up over the past 14 days," she said.

New variants in the state, along with reopenings in the community in late March, the Easter holiday and spring break travel have all contributed to the rise, she said.

"When you put all of those things together, it's not surprising that we're seeing some increases in our metrics," Harris said.

While community spread is ticking up, there has been good news, Harris said: No COVID-19 deaths have been reported in long term care facilities in Mecklenburg County since late February.

"That is significant because at one point, our long term care facilities were representing well over 50 - 60 percent of all deaths in the county," said Harris, who credited "heavy" vaccination efforts for the development.

The facilities are a microcosm where elements of herd immunity are in place, and even when there are infections, the illness isn't as severe, she said.

"It just reinforces the need for us to be vaccinated in our community," Harris said.

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