AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Nearly 30% of those age 16 and older in Travis County have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to state data released Thursday.
Austin Public Health says 12% of the county's adult population has been fully vaccinated, with more than 139,000 doses being administered by APH.
"We know that the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on everyone," APH Director Stephanie Hayden-Howard said in a statement. "Whether that be physically or emotionally, everyone has had to change their daily routines and limit interactions that were once normal. These sacrifices have not gone unnoticed, and our community has done comparatively well in limiting COVID-19 cases and deaths. As supply increases and more people are able to get vaccinated, we will be able to begin a return to normalcy."
APH pointed to long-term care facilities and efforts to prioritize vaccination efforts, with only six new COVID-19 cases reported in the previous 14 days ending March 18. That's a 98% decrease compared to January 21, when 273 cases were reported in the same 14-day window.
"Every person living in a long-term care facility is someone's loved one – mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers." Austin-Travis County interim health authority Dr. Mark Escott said. "By prioritizing them at the beginning of vaccine distribution, additional lives were saved and has improved the ability of family members to more safely visit their loved ones in these facilities."
Travis County is home to 129,438 individuals who are 65 years of age and older. According to DSHS data, 78,314 people (60.5%) in this prioritized age group have received at least one dose, with 23.4% of APH doses administered to those 60 years of age and older.
