April 12 update: Pa. again accelerates COVID-19 vaccine program; Centre adds 102 cases
All Pennsylvania adults will be eligible to schedule COVID-19 vaccine appointments starting Tuesday, the Wolf administration said.
The state moved into Phase 1C of the vaccine program on Monday and this new announcement moves the start of Phase 2 up by almost a week. The Health Department said there are available appointments in many parts of the state even as more people become eligible.
“We need to maintain acceleration of the vaccine rollout, especially as case counts and hospitalization rates have increased,” Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement. “Therefore, just as President Biden has brought forward universal adult access to vaccines from May 1 to April 19, we are moving Pennsylvania’s timeline of universal adult access to April 13.”
Acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said this decision gives more people the chance to get vaccinated sooner, including college students.
“This change provides earlier access for many, including college students increasing the likelihood of completion of two-dose regimens prior to leaving campus for the summer,” Beam said in a statement. “It also means simpler, streamlined operations for vaccine providers that no longer need to check eligibility of people making appointments.”
As of Monday, the state has administered 6.41 million doses to 4.23 million people (excluding Philadelphia and federal facilities). The state ranks fifth in the country for total doses given and 11th for first doses given by percentage of population (38.9%), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
In Centre County, 52,662 partial vaccinations and 36,615 full vaccinations have been given to 56,494 people.
Centre County reported 102 new cases over the past two days — 71 on Sunday and 31 on Monday — to bring the total to 15,317. In all, there have been 13,978 confirmed cases and 1,339 probable cases along with 66,100 negative tests.
Pennsylvania added 6,450 cases over the past two days — 3,362 reported Sunday and 3,088 on Monday — to raise the total to 1,075,424. There have been 4.23 million negative tests and 89% of people have recovered statewide.
The breakdown of confirmed Centre County cases by ZIP code, and the change from the previous day (if any), is as follows, according to the Health Department:
- 16801 (State College): 5,257 (+26 since Saturday)
- 16823 (Bellefonte/Pleasant Gap): 2,487 (+15)
- 16803 (State College): 1,334 (+9)
- 16802 (University Park): 1,257 (+12)
- 16686 (Tyrone): 1,001 (+6)
- 16866 (Philipsburg): 812 (+3)
- 16870 (Port Matilda): 474 (+4)
- 16841 (Howard): 400 (+5)
- 16828 (Centre Hall): 281 (+3)
- 16827 (Boalsburg): 271 (+5)
- 16875 (Spring Mills): 264 (+4)
- 16845 (Karthaus): 263
- 16822 (Beech Creek): 195 (+1)
- 16844 (Julian): 190
- 16666 (Osceola Mills): 184
- 16853 (Milesburg): 127
- 16877 (Warriors Mark): 111 (+1)
- 16874 (Snow Shoe): 100 (+2)
- 16865 (Pennsylvania Furnace): 83 (+1)
- 16826 (Blanchard): 77 (+1)
- 16829 (Clarence): 67
- 16854 (Millheim): 67 (+1)
- 16872 (Rebersburg): 63 (+1)
- 16851 (Lemont): 56 (+1)
- 16820 (Aaronsburg): 50 (+1)
- 16859 (Moshannon): 45
- 16856 (Mingoville): 29
- 16868 (Pine Grove Mills): 28
- 16832 (Coburn): 27 (+1)
- 16860 (Munson): 27 (+1)
- 16677 (Sandy Ridge): 26
- 16852 (Madisonburg): 19
- 16835 (Unionville): 13
- 16864 (Orviston): 13
- 16804 (State College): 10
- 16882 (Woodward): 9
- 16805 (State College): 1-4
The state does not provide specific numbers when there are fewer than five cases to protect patient privacy, and does not identify exactly where a case occurred in a ZIP code that spans multiple counties.
Statewide, the average daily number of hospitalizations is about 3,800 lower than the December peak and also below the height of last spring, the Health Department said. However, the average number of patients has been increasing recently.
Pennsylvania reported three new deaths Sunday and one on Monday to bring the total to 25,406. The state continues to list 213 deaths in Centre County.
The Health Department removed one of the two Centre County nursing home resident cases added Saturday and added one employee case to the total. The state also added a death on Saturday, which puts the latest figures at 725 resident cases, 155 employee cases and 163 deaths at 18 long-term care facilities in the county.
Pennsylvania’s positivity rate ticked up to 9.5% during the period April 2-Thursday, according to the state’s early warning monitoring system dashboard. The previous week’s rate was 9.4%. Centre County’s positivity rate fell to 9.6% from 10.3%.
Forest County has the state’s lowest rate at 1.4% while Wyoming County has the highest at 23%.
Centre County’s rate of 239.6 cases per 100,000 residents is 10th highest in the state. During the previous week, the county had the ninth highest rate. The statewide case rate is 180.
This story was originally published April 12, 2021 at 11:58 AM with the headline "April 12 update: Pa. again accelerates COVID-19 vaccine program; Centre adds 102 cases."