Rhode Island Sets New Target Dates For Vaccination Rates

PROVIDENCE, RI — With vaccination rates soaring in Rhode Island and all residents 16 and older set to become eligible to get vaccinated in just over two weeks, state health officials are looking ahead to a promising summer in the Ocean State. On Thursday, Gov. Dan McKee and top state officials announced two new dates residents can look to for greater flexibility in the state: May 15 and June 5.

By May 15, the Rhode Island Department of Health anticipates that 70 percent of Rhode Islanders aged 16 and older will have gotten at least one dose of their coronavirus vaccine two weeks earlier, meaning they will have partial immunity. By June 5, that number is expected to rise to 70 percent of all Rhode Island residents with at least one shot.

While these target dates won't mean the state will have reached herd immunity, it will be a turning point in the pandemic, said Tom McCarthy, who runs the state's vaccine distribution. If Rhode Island can reach that goal, McCarthy said, the state will finally be able to start the transition form coronavirus response to recovery.

Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, the director of the Rhode Island Department of Health, said that the state can only reach the May 15 and June 5 goals if residents get vaccinated as soon as they can. Along with allowing for looser restrictions, she said, the state's robust vaccination program is helping to keep the state at a plateau of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, even as more transmissible variants spread.

"We will vaccinate the Ocean State," McKee said. "Don't miss your shot."