BLUEFIELD, WV (WOAY) – The Mercer County Health Department has reported they have a 100% vaccine distribution rate.
This means that across all of their vaccine distributions over the past month, they’ve administered every vaccine received from the state government.
Even if vaccines go unused due to a no-show during a vaccination event, they will try to find someone else on the list to receive the vaccine instead. This is because the vaccines must be administered within only a few hours after they’ve been opened, otherwise they will lose their effectiveness and become useless.
And as more people see the interest in vaccines, some who were initially on the fence have changed their minds.
Mercer County Board of Health Member Stacey Hicks says those in qualified groups can still register to receive it, even if they didn’t at the first opportunity.
“A lot of people were afraid to take the vaccine. Now they’ve seen a lot of people who have taken it and they’re okay. So people are getting more comfortable to take it,” Hicks said.
Anyone who is qualified and has changed their mind about receiving the vaccine can pre-register for it on the state’s COVID-19 pre-registration website.
Hicks added that if a first responder or other priority group member changes their mind, they are not sent to the front of the line for future distributions, but they get put back in the distribution system.
