Virginia Tops 2M Fully Vaccinated On Eve Of Expanded Eligibility

VIRGINIA — More than 2 million residents of Virginia are now full vaccinated as the state nears the opening of vaccination appointment for all people 16 and older, according to Virginia health officials.

On Friday, the Virginia Department of Health reported that 2,002,007 Virginians, or 23.5 percent of the state's population, were fully vaccinated.

According to VDH data, 5,105,585 total doses have been administered, with 3,300,058 people, or 38.7 percent of the state's population, receiving at least their first dose. The seven-day average on Friday was 77,755 doses administered in Virginia.

Local health departments lead the state with 1,510,332 total doses given, followed by 1,258,486 given at pharmacies. Hospitals have administered a total of 952,707 vaccines. Medical practices are next with 763,472 doses administered followed by community health providers at 620,588.

When Virginia opens up COVID-19 vaccinations for 16 and older residents on Sunday, people looking to book an appointment will encounter a different scheduling process.

The vaccinate.virginia.gov website will switch over from focusing on pre-registration to helping Virginians schedule their own appointment for a vaccine. The VDH site will link to the CDC's VaccineFinder tool, which is a searchable map-based site that allows people to find available vaccine appointments at Community Vaccination Centers, local health district clinics, pharmacies and hospitals near them.

RELATED: Self-Scheduling COVID-19 Vaccinations Starts Sunday In Virginia

The Fairfax County Health District, which has been operating its own pre-registration system for much of the last two months, informed residents Wednesday that they would need to start using VaccineFinder.org to make appointments when the county enters Phase 2 on Sunday.

The state's vaccination system, Vaccinate.Virginia.gov, will remain open after April 18 to help schedule appointments for individuals with Phase 1 eligibility. After April 18, people in the Phase 1 priority group can schedule an appointment either through VaccineFinder.org or VaccinateVirginia.gov. The can also request help scheduling appointments by calling 877-VAX-IN-VA (877-829-4682).

On Friday, Gov. Ralph Northam shared a video message encouraging Virginians seeking a vaccination opportunity to call the statewide call center or use the new Vaccinate Virginia website to find vaccine providers starting Sunday.

By opening vaccinations to everyone 16 and older on Sunday, Virginia will meet a nationwide goal set by President Joe Biden that all adults be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine by April 19.

COVID-19 Data

The VDH reported a 6.1-percent coronavirus positivity rate on Friday from tests performed on residents over the past seven days. The positivity rate of 6.1 percent has remained unchanged since last Saturday.

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, 18,007 daily PCR testing encounters were reported statewide on April 12, down from a peak of 35,034 on Jan. 14.

On Friday, 1,594 additional COVID-19 cases were reported by the VDH, and the seven-day average of daily cases was 1,514. Northern Virginia accounted for 393 new cases on Friday and has a seven-day average of 414 daily cases.

An additional 20 COVID-19 deaths were reported Friday, bringing the death total to 10,549.

Virginia's COVID-19 hospitalizations stand at 1,030 statewide as of Friday. The current count includes 246 patients in intensive care units and 147 on ventilators.

Ventilator use among all hospital patients is at 29 percent, and ICU occupancy is at 79 percent, according to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association.

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

• Alexandria: 11,402 cases, 547 hospitalizations, 130 deaths; increase of 15 cases
• Arlington County: 14,774 cases, 821 hospitalizations, 249 deaths; increase of 32 cases
• Fairfax County: 74,175 cases, 3,833 hospitalizations, 1,059 deaths; increase of 166 cases and one death
• Fairfax City: 534 cases, 47 hospitalizations, 18 deaths; no changes
• Falls Church: 411 cases, 20 hospitalizations, nine deaths; increase of two cases
• Loudoun County: 26,569 cases, 992 hospitalizations, 273 deaths; increase of 81 cases and four hospitalizations
• Manassas: 4,248 cases, 169 hospitalizations, 45 deaths; increase of one case
• Manassas Park: 1,183 cases, 68 hospitalizations, 12 deaths; increase of three cases
• Prince William County: 43,614 cases, 1,583 hospitalizations, 477 deaths; increase of 93 cases and two hospitalizations
• Fredericksburg: 1,987 cases, 99 hospitalizations, 22 deaths; increase of eight cases
• Spotsylvania County: 9,324 cases, 301 hospitalizations, 112 deaths; increase of 28 cases, one hospitalization and two deaths
• Stafford County: 10,658 cases, 345 hospitalizations, 72 deaths; increase of 28 cases and three hospitalizations