Vaccine Supply, COVID-19 Numbers in Chester County: Updates

CHESTER COUNTY, PA — Measures for COVID-19 in Chester County continue to trend downward, with 129 fewer positive cases this week compared to last — but the vaccination rollout story is far less encouraging.

The waiting game for vaccines has been a supply problem across Pennsylvania. Doses meant to be second doses of the Moderna vaccine were given as first doses, and officials say this means 30,000 to 60,000 state residents who have received their first dose will have a one- to two-week delay in receiving their second dose. Read that full story here.

As counties planned and set up centers for vaccine distribution, countians rushed to register, and registrations quickly outpaced supply; it seems everyone eligible is on a waiting list hoping to be contacted to schedule their appointment.

Doses are going out at what could be called a snail's pace in Chester and Delaware counties. The state Department of Health update for Feb. 19 said Chester County has given 37,117 first doses of the vaccine and about half of those — 18,222 — have received a second dose here. Nearby Delaware County's numbers are similar, where 38,635 first doses have gone out, and 20,731 have received second doses of a COVID-19 vaccination.

The biggest news this week for Chesco vaccines was that 1,500 doses would arrive and be administered Saturday. Those doses will go to persons already registered, who are being contacted, Chester County Health Department said on Friday.

A days-long winter storm further impeded vaccine distribution. Dangerous road conditions in Pennsylvania delayed the direct shipments of both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines to providers, the state Department of Health said on Friday.

It is not yet clear exactly how many scheduled appointments may be delayed. It's also unknown if this will prevent some individuals from receiving their second doses within the CDC-recommended 42-day timeframe. Read that full story here.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported Chester County's new COVID-19 cases were down by 129 in the week ending Feb. 19. The trend downward in cases has continued since late January but is slowing. New case counts decreased by 315, and then by 255, in the last weeks of January. New cases fell by 148 in the week ending Feb. 4.

The downward trend this week of 129 fewer positive tests was a smaller drop but still represents a slowing trend. In the week ending Feb. 12 the state DOH reported 672 new COVID-19 cases in Chester County, and in the week ending Feb. 19, 543 new cases were reported.

All of the state DOH measures reported weekly fell this week.

The positivity rate for tests dropped from 6.2 percent to 5.6 percent in most recent the week. A month ago, that number was at 10 percent, then it dropped to 8.4 percent before measuring 7 percent in the week ending Jan. 29. Positivity rates are used alongside raw case counts to give a clearer picture of how a virus might be acting in an area's population.

The incidence rate also fell in the last week, from 128 to 103.4 per 100,000 residents. In mid-January, the incidence rate for Chester County had been at 248 per 100,000 residents.

Hospitalizations in Chester County for COVID-19 dropped again, from 96.1 to 62.7 persons hospitalized daily, on average. This week's average of 62.7 hospitalizations is about half of what it was three weeks ago, at 118. The number of persons on ventilators in the county also dropped, from 11 last week to 7 on average in the week ending Feb. 12. That again is half of what it was in the week ending Jan. 28 when 14 persons were on ventilators each day.

New COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania dropped from 20,347 in the last week to 14,886 in the week ending Feb. 19 — a decrease of 5,462 new cases. The state Department of Health reports 23,480 in Pennsylvania have died of COVID-19, and in Chester County, 711 deaths were reported by DOH this week. Delaware County has seen 1,212 deaths from COVID-19 as of Feb. 12, according to the state's report.

The vaccine supply is still a dribble into the area, and not much has changed in the last week. Read that story here.

For information on the COVID-19 vaccination in Chester County, go here.

Justin Heinze contributed to this story.

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