More Than Half Of VA Adults Have Received At Least 1 Vaccine Dose

VIRGINIA — More than half of adults in Virginia have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to state health data.

The Virginia Department of Health's data shows that 53.6 percent of Virginia residents 18 and older have received at least one dose as of Friday, while 34.6 percent of adults are fully vaccinated.

As of Friday, 5,667,951 doses had been administered since last December. A total of 2,310,843 Virginians, or 27.1 percent of the state's entire population, are fully vaccinated.

As of Friday, 3,555,281 people, or 41.7 percent of the state's entire population, have received at least their first dose of the vaccine. The seven-day average on Friday was 75,984 doses administered in Virginia.

Local health departments lead the state with 1,656,839 total doses given, followed by 1,420,593 given at pharmacies. Hospitals have administered a total of 1,011,572 vaccines. Medical practices are next with 850,806 doses administered followed by community health providers at 728,441.

Due to an ongoing shortage of vaccine doses, areas of Northern Virginia are still telling their residents to be patient. The Arlington County Public Health Division, for example, is warning county residents they may have to wait awhile before they are able to schedule an appointment to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

"Even though we are in Phase 2, it may take up to a few weeks to hear from us, as there is overwhelming demand and limited supply," said Jessica Baxter, a public information officer with Public Health, who was answering questions in a video posted Thursday to Arlington's official YouTube channel.

Governor Relaxes COVID-19 Restrictions

Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday that starting May 15, sports and entertainment venues in Virginia may begin to operate with expanded capacity and social gathering limits will increase.

Restaurants also may begin selling alcohol after midnight starting May 15, and dining rooms will not be required to be closed between midnight and 5 a.m. Currently, in-person alcohol sales must end at midnight, and dining rooms must be closed between midnight and 5 a.m. These restrictions do not impact delivery and takeout service.

The governor cited the increase in vaccinated Virginians as the reason for the easing of restrictions.

COVID-19 Data

The VDH reported a 5.8-percent coronavirus positivity rate on Friday from tests performed on residents over the past seven days.

The positive rate is far below the 2021 high of 17.4 percent reported on Jan. 3 by the VDH. Since the start of the pandemic, the all-time high of the seven-day coronavirus positivity rate was 20.2 percent on April 20, 2020.

On average, 17,885 daily PCR testing encounters were reported statewide on April 18, down from a peak of 35,034 on Jan. 14.

On Friday, 1,340 additional COVID-19 cases were reported by the VDH, and the seven-day average of daily cases was 1,300. Northern Virginia accounted for 392 new cases on Friday and has a seven-day average of 336 daily cases.

SEE ALSO: How To Get The COVID-19 Vaccine In Virginia

An additional 13 COVID-19 deaths were reported Friday, bringing the death total to 10,666.
Virginia's COVID-19 hospitalizations stood at 1,055 statewide on Friday. The current count includes 248 patients in intensive care units and 136 on ventilators.

Ventilator use among all hospital patients is at 28 percent, and ICU occupancy is at 77 percent, according to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association.

In the United States, 31.9 million people have been infected by COVID-19, and 570,463 people have died, Johns Hopkins University reported Friday.

Here are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area from Thursday to Friday:

• Alexandria: 11,540 cases, 550 hospitalizations, 133 deaths; increase of 18 cases
• Arlington County: 14,944 cases, 823 hospitalizations, 251 deaths; increase of 41 cases, one hospitalization and one death
• Fairfax County: 75,166 cases, 3,856 hospitalizations, 1,067 deaths; increase of 178 cases and three hospitalizations
• Fairfax City: 540 cases, 47 hospitalizations, 18 deaths; no changes
• Falls Church: 417 cases, 20 hospitalizations, eight deaths; one case and one death removed
• Loudoun County: 26,977 cases, 1,017 hospitalizations, 274 deaths; increase of 49 cases and two hospitalizations
• Manassas: 4,291 cases, 169 hospitalizations, 47 deaths; three cases removed, increase of one death
• Manassas Park: 1,196 cases, 68 hospitalizations, 12 deaths; increase of nine cases
• Prince William County: 44,173 cases, 1,596 hospitalizations, 479 deaths; increase of 81 cases and two hospitalizations
• Fredericksburg: 2,033 cases, 99 hospitalizations, 22 deaths; increase of 11 cases
• Spotsylvania County: 9,524 cases, 302 hospitalizations, 113 deaths; increase of 21 cases and one hospitalization
• Stafford County: 10,906 cases, 350 hospitalizations, 74 deaths; increase of 39 cases, two hospitalizations and one death

RELATED: VA Governor To Ease Social Gathering Sizes, Capacity Limits