SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) – Health officials in Santa Clara County report progress in vaccinating health care workers and other high-risk groups.
Roughly one-third of those eligible have received the vaccine and health care providers have joined the effort.
COVID vaccinations at one of three public health clinics wrapped up for the day. After a slow start, the daily number of vaccinations is expected to double by next week.
At clinics like this one on Tully Road in San Jose and at hospitals and health care systems across the South Bay, more than 47,000 healthcare workers have received their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Among them is Willow Glen Family Dentistry’s Amy Luna.
“With our patients, we want to make sure that their, they feel safe and their comfortable, so having the shot and being able to provide that comfort is a good sense to ensuring that all of our team is safe as well,” Luna said.
Amid the state’s expanded eligibility for vaccinations to all healthcare personnel under phase 1-a, the county is averaging 1,500 vaccinations per day now and is expected to be at least twice that by next week as more vaccination sites come online.
“Anyone who falls in phase 1-a, you can go to your healthcare provider and get a vaccine,” Dr. Sara Cody said.
“We’ve heard that the federal government, under the new administration is going to push out a lot more vaccines, the plan is to open many more mass vaccination sites,” Dr. Marty Fenstersheib, Santa Clara County Testing Officer, said.
There are roughly 140,000 healthcare workers in the county.
Under phase 1-a, the first tier is focused on hospital staff, long term care facilities, medical first responders and in-home health care providers. eligible because he is caring for his 93 year old father is Ninh Filip.
“I don’t want to be a society liability to infect anyone and of course, I don’t want to have brain damage or lung scar, so when I’m qualified to take the shot, I’m very happy to take it,” Filip said.
As for the bad news, Santa Clara County is now reporting an average of 1,200 new COVID cases everyday and the number of people who have died since the pandemic began is now at 800.