At the time the federal government began distributing the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, he believed at least 70 percent of Ohio County residents would welcome the chance to be inoculated.
That, however, has not been the case. According to the online dashboard created and managed by the state Department of Health and Human Resources, only 51 percent of Ohio County residents have received one shot (21,141), and only 45.3 percent (18,743) are fully vaccinated.
“I am disappointed a little bit about the percentage of people who have come for their vaccinations,” said Lou Vargo, the director the Wheeling-Ohio County Emergency Management Agency. “I thought we could get to about 75 percent here in Ohio County, but we haven’t reached that. In the beginning, the community vaccinations clinic was very busy, but then the demand diminished as the age levels were decreased. I really thought that once people saw that there were no major reactions to the vaccines that they would decide to go and get theirs.
“I know there were some people who wanted to wait and see what would happen to the first groups to get the vaccines, and maybe the lack of any serious reactions did convince of some of the people who came, but it didn’t reach the point where I hoped we would get,” he said. “We did see a big decrease in the number of cases during the summer last year, and that has happened once again. The number of positive cases in Ohio County has been in the single digits for the past few weeks.”
Vaccinations to Continue, But …
According to the statistics compiled by the state DHHR, the vaccinations have been most popular with residents 65 and older (80 percent). Vargo said the shots have been least popular among those between the ages of 35 and 54.
Public events and riverfront festivals, though, are set to take place. That is one of many reasons why the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department will continue offering first and second doses throughout the summer months, but the last day for the clinic at The Highlands will be tomorrow.
“We have done pretty well in Ohio County, and this week we are in the process of offering second doses to people who are between the ages of 12 and 15 years old,” Vargo explained. “The volunteers will be at the former Michael’s location at The Highlands for second doses and anyone who wants to walk in for their first or second dose. Into the future, the vaccinations will only be offered at the Wheeling-Oho County Health Department after Thursday.
“Anyone can go to the health department in the Ohio County Courthouse for their first or second dose,” he said. “We will have the former Michael’s location available in the future, and if we need it again, we’ll use it, but right now the volume of people can be handled easily at the health department. Now, if it is determined that we’ll need booster shots, we’ll likely open the Michael’s space again to handle that demand.”
Continued Education
Officials with the federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention have made a plethora of announcements the past few months that have been based on the information learned since vaccinations began nationwide, and that has allowed states to ease and erase mandated precautions like wearing face coverings and remaining socially distanced.
That is why the City of Wheeling has moved forward with events at Heritage Port and with the Centre Market Concert Series that begins on June 18, and that’s also why Oglebay has offered several events during May and June.
More information, Vargo expects, will continue to be released by the CDC.
“We continue to learn a lot about this novel virus because we’ve not seen anything like this before,” Vargo said. “We’ve also seen variants of the virus so that tells us that the virus has continued to mutate. What we also do not know yet is whether we’ll need those booster shots and whether or not we’ll have a Covid season like we’ve had a flu season.
“We’ve also learned a lot about the cases involving pre-existing conditions and the reactions that other medications are having on the vaccines,” he continued. “Keep in mind, though, that we’ve only been in this pandemic for a little over a year, so, yes, we’re still learning.”
That is the primary reason why Vargo does not expect terms like “coronavirus” and “pandemic” to fade anytime soon.
“We know Covid is here to stay and that unvaccinated people will continue to contract the virus,” the EMA director said. “And I won’t be surprised if we will need a booster every year. If that’s the case, we’ll organize the efforts to offer those booster shots so the people who want them can get them.
“Because we know Covid is going to be here for a while, we’ll start preparing for those clinics just in case,” Vargo added. “And I’m sure public health officials across the United States will continue learning more and more about how it started and if we’ll need to take precautions in the future. There are still a lot of unknowns at this point, but we do know the vaccinations have worked for those who got their shots.”
