COVID-19 cases are low in Wasco County, but as a reminder of what can be at stake, the county now has 27 deaths from COVID, the two latest reported in mid-February, and currently two people are hospitalized with the disease.
We can avoid further deaths and hospitalizations. North Central Public Health District (NCPHD) offers two vaccines, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, and both are 100 percent effective at preventing death and hospitalization from COVID.
Our appointments next week are booked, but we will create openings next week for the following week, including hundreds of Moderna openings. Our clinics are held at the Fort Dalles Readiness Center, 402 E. Scenic Dr.
Newly eligible for the vaccine are frontline workers and their families, and anyone 16 and older with an underlying health condition (although the Modern and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are only for those 18 and older). NCPHD is working to bring the Pfizer vaccine to vaccinate those 16 and 17 with underlying conditions.
On Tuesday, Gov. Kate Brown announced that all Oregonians 16 and older would be eligible for the vaccine starting April 19.
To book a Moderna appointment when they open next week, visit https://www.ncphd.org/ and find the vaccine booking link at the top of our home page, or call our office at 541-506-2600.
(For more information, please visit COVID-19 Vaccine in Oregon, contact North Central Public Health District at (541) 506-2600, visit us on the web at www.ncphd.org or find us on Facebook.)