One hundred thousand vaccinations in Thurston County as of this week

Links in this story can help you get an appointment for your first vaccine

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Sometime this coming week, Thurston County health officials expect to hit a notable milestone in the COVID-19 vaccination effort — giving the 100,000th vaccine.

As of yesterday, 99,212 vaccines have been administered to Thurston County residents, said Schelli Slaughter, director of Thurston County Public Health and Social Services (PHSS). That number represents 23.9 percent of Thurston County residents who have received at least one vaccine — with 14 percent of the county population in total receiving a second dose.

Slaughter said 4,703 people were vaccinated during mass vaccination events at South Puget Sound Community College (SPSCC) last week. Additional events are planned at the SPSCC campus on Wednesday and Friday, as well as events at the Thurston County Fairgrounds on Saturday and Sunday.

Check out the PHSS Facebook page and website for additional information on registering for these events.  

This page has links to vaccination sites that are offering appointments, organized by distance from the Zip Code you enter. 

The ongoing vaccination effort has gained new importance, said County Health Officer Dr. Dimyana Abdelmalek, who said two Thurston County residents have tested positive for a variant of the coronavirus called B1351. This variant is still being researched. However, Abdelmalek said it has been proven to more transmissible, although it hasn’t yet been proven to cause illnesses that are more serious than the original strain.

The variant was first detected in South Africa, and has been present in the United States since January. Abdelmalek noted that the current COVID vaccines are largely effective against variants of the coronavirus. She said continuing safety measures like wearing masks, social distancing and frequent hand washing are the best defenses against variants.

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