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TUESDAY MORNING STORY LINES
More local hospitals expect to receive COVID-19 vaccine shipments on Tuesday. Triangle hospitals will receive more than 85,000 doses this week. WakeMed is expected to get its first shipment in the next few days. Cape Fear Valley Medical Center could receive its first round of vaccinations on Tuesday.
“We need a critical mass of people who are immune to this virus for that to really change,” Dr. David Wohl told UNC Health. “Hopefully, this vaccine will.” Wohl will be one of the first to have access to the vaccine.
Gov. Roy Cooper will give information at 2 p.m. on the state’s response to COVID-19. The briefing will be broadcast live on ABC11 and abc11.com. This will be Cooper’s first comment since the vaccine was sent. Cooper called the arrival of the vaccine on Monday “a remarkable achievement for science and health.”
Meanwhile, the Wake County public school system is expected to vote Tuesday on face-to-face class breaks. The school board met Monday to discuss the increase in cases among students and staff members.
The proposed plan would return students to remote learning from January 4-15.
MONDAY
16:52
Sampson County has reported 81 new cases since Friday.
In all, 12,257 tests have been conducted since the start of the pandemic and Sampson County has had 4,362 positive cases.
A total of 54 people have died from COVID-19 problems across the county.
16:35 h
Durham VA Health Care System announced that it has been selected as one of 37 VA sites to receive initial doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
DVAHCS was selected for its ability to vaccinate large numbers of people and store them in extremely cold temperatures.
“We are very excited to provide a vaccine that can help control COVID-19 when used in conjunction with public health measures such as masking, physical distancing, and frequent hand washing,” said Paul Crews, health system executive. of Durham VA Director.
Veterans looking for additional information can visit the VA Coronavirus FAQ website or contact their primary care team.
16:10 h
Lee County said it has 159 new cases of COVID-19 as of Thursday for a total of 2,922 cases.
In Lee County, 2,542 people have recovered. Since the pandemic began, 36 people in the county have died from COVID-19, including a new death reported Monday from a patient who had been hospitalized at Sanford Central Carolina Hospital.
“We offer our sincerest condolences to the family and friends who have lost their loved one to COVID-19 and ask the community to keep them in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time,” said director Heath Cain of the Department of Health. “We know the holiday season is usually a time of coexistence, but with new COVID-19 cases across the state, we want to stress the importance of following CDC guidelines during this critical time. Follow the 3 W’s – use a mask, keep your distance and wash your hands and, when possible, avoid indoor meetings with people outside your immediate home. These actions will help keep your family, friends and neighbors safe. “
4 p.m.
All locations in the Cape Fear Valley health system, including hospitals and outpatient clinics, will be completely closed to visitors until further notice, with the following exceptions: they require communication assistance and end-of-life patients.
15:47
The United States exceeded the threshold of 300,000 deaths the same day it launched the largest vaccination campaign in U.S. history, with health workers lifting up their sleeves to shoot COVID-19 on Monday.
The United States accounts for nearly 1 in 5 confirmed virus deaths worldwide, far more than any other country despite its wealth and medical resources.
15:34 h
The Orange County Department of Health will host several free COVID-19 testing events during the week. Find a location and get the latest information here.
15:10 h
Moore County health officials report five deaths related to COVID-19. Three dead were residents of Sant Josep dels Pins.
The Moore County Department of Health has reported five Moore County residents whose deaths were determined to be related to COVID-19 infection. Three of the individuals were residents of Sant Josep dels Pins
12:40 p.m.
Atrium Health in Charlotte has begun vaccinating front-line workers against COVID-19.
The hospital group said Dr. Katie Passaretti was the first person in North Carolina to receive the Pfizer vaccine since the FDA authorized it on Friday.
“I couldn’t be more excited. I feel perfectly fine; I haven’t had any problems with the vaccine,” Passaretti said.
12:57 pm
The Halifax County Department of Health reports 87 new cases and one additional death.
In all, there were 2,350 positive COVID cases totaling 19 and 41 deaths in the county.
11:55 h
After the first decline in weeks, COVID-19 hospitalizations returned to record highs, with 2,553 people battling the virus under the care of hospital staff.
292 patients with confirmed cases of COVID-19 were admitted in the last 24 hours. 257 COVID-19 suspects were admitted in the same time period.
The latest figures from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services show that another 32 people have died from the virus, bringing their death toll to 5,855 since the start of the pandemic.
The percentage of positive tests remained at 11.6% and 4,770 new cases were recorded. This is a drop from the previous days, but this lowercase number is typical on Mondays; the positive percentage is what state officials will be concerned about, as their goal has always been to keep that figure below 5%.
The response time for tests is 3.3 days and is constantly increasing.
You can look up the numbers for yourself on the NCDHHS website.
11:15 h
Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, posted a video message on Twitter, supporting the state’s effort to vaccinate as many people as possible against COVID-19.
“There is good news in the fight against COVID,” Dr. Cohen says in the video. “Proven, safe and effective vaccines will be available to everyone, starting with the most vulnerable people to the virus. Rest assured that you have a place and will be able to make the best shot against COVID.”
A website with more information on the state’s COVID-19 vaccination plan was launched.
9:55 h
Gov. Roy Cooper confirms that the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have landed in North Carolina, and considers it “a remarkable achievement for science and health.”
The first doses of COVID-19 vaccine have arrived in North Carolina. For now it is a limited supply, but this is a remarkable achievement for science and health. We must all continue to wear a mask and act responsibly while vaccinating as many people as possible.
– Governor Roy Cooper (@NC_Governor) December 14, 2020
9:15 h
UNC Health does not expect to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine until Tuesday.
Thousands of doses of the newly authorized vaccine began to be shipped across the country on Monday.
However, UNC Health tells ABC11 that its main campus does not expect to receive any doses until Tuesday. Other campuses in the system expect to receive shipments later in the week.
UNC Health Statement:
“NC DHHS informed UNC Health officials on Sunday afternoon that UNC Medical Center is expected to receive vaccines on Tuesday. Other hospitals in our system, including UNC REX, are expected to receive vaccines later in the week. working on the preparations we can start inoculating our frontline staff as soon as the vaccines arrive. “
MONDAY MORNING STORY LINES
The first batch of COVID-19 vaccines is expected to arrive on Monday in a hopeful update in the fight against the virus. Many doses of the vaccine will be shipped from a Pfizer plant in Michigan.
In the first round of shipments, 145 locations in 50 states will receive thousands of doses of the vaccine. Across North Carolina, hospitals receive 85,000 doses. UNC REX and Duke Hospitals expect to get 2,925 doses each in their first shipments, with WakeMed expecting 3,900 doses between its Raleigh and Cary campuses.
Front-line health workers could start receiving shots as early as today. Families and the general public are not expected to be vaccinated until early 2021.
The Wake County public school system will meet Monday at 3 p.m. to consider returning exclusively to e-learning.
The state reported more than 6,800 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, the second-highest pandemic total.
Free COVID-19 test sites will open this week at Green Road Park, Barwell Road Park and Lions Park in Raleigh.
SUNDAY
1:50 pm
The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Robert Redfield, has accepted an advisory committee’s recommendation that the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine be given to people 16 years of age or older, which means that shots of the vaccine can now be given in the United States. States.
11:50 h
North Carolina health officials report 6,819 more cases of COVID-19, bringing the current total to 436,595. This is the second highest single-day increase in cases since 7,540 on Friday.
Across the state, 27 more people have died from the virus, bringing the total to 5,823.
With 95% of hospitals, 2,520 people remain hospitalized by COVID-19. This represents a decrease of 57 in the first decrease that the state has seen since the end of November. However, hospitalization figures remain the highest they have been during the pandemic.
Currently, the daily positive percentage of tests is 11.6%, slightly below the 11.7% on Saturday.
Since March, nearly 6 million tests have been completed statewide.
9:20 p.m.
According to data from Johns Hopkins University, there have been more than 16 million cases of COVID-19 in the United States since March.
7:30 p.m.
Millions of doses of a COVID-19 vaccine are being loaded into containers at the Michigan loading facility of drug maker Pfizer.
FIRST LOOK: COVID-19 vaccine doses leave Pfizer’s Michigan facility
Copyright © 2020 ABC11-WTVD-TV / DT. All rights reserved: Associated Press contributed to this report.