Tuesday Feb. 16 COVID-19 update: Nebraska working to improve vaccine distribution

(WOWT) - Below are today’s vaccination updates as well as data reports on new cases and other COVID-19 stats reported by health officials across Nebraska and Iowa.

Keep scrolling to find helpful links and other information, including phone numbers to call for help getting signed up for your vaccine.

Douglas County updates hospital occupancy, reports 3 COVID-19 deaths

According to the Douglas County Health Department update, medical and surgical beds were at 71% with 447 beds available and adult ICU beds are occupied at a 67% rate with 110 beds available.

The Douglas County Health Department reported three COVID-19 deaths Tuesday: a woman in her 70s, a man over age 90, and another woman in her 80s. The total number of community COVID-19 deaths is now at 639.

DCDH also reported 43 additional positive cases, bringing the total number of cases reported in the county since the start of the pandemic to 62,788. The seven-day rolling average of new positive cases reported is 103.

Updated recovery numbers were not available Tuesday, according to the DCHD release.

More than 60,000 vaccinated in the Lincoln area

The Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department reported that 60,078 COVID-19 vaccination doses had been administered in the health district.

Also on Tuesday, LLCHD reported two additional COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday: a woman in her 50s and a man in his 70s, who had both been hospitalized.

The total number of COVID-19 deaths is the community is 212.

The health district also reported 29 new cases, bringing the community total to 27,563. LLCHD has 30 hospitalized with COVID-19, with five of them on ventilators. To date, 12,044 COVID-19 recoveries have been confirmed.

This week’s positivity rate was not yet available; the positivity rate for Feb. 7-14 was 18%. The local risk dial is currently at mid-yellow, meaning there is a moderate risk of community spread there.

Nebraska ranks 33rd in rate of administering virus shots

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Nebraska ranks in the middle of the pack in the rate of administering coronavirus vaccines, but state officials are working to speed up the distribution of the shots.

The state ranked 33rd among states and the District of Columbia by administering 14,770 shots per 100,000 people as of Sunday, according to data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overall, Nebraska has administered 285,708 of the 407,500 doses it has received — or roughly 70% of the doses.

Lincoln Dr. Bob Rauner, who is president of the Partnership for a Healthy Lincoln, said the state should be distributing the vaccines faster.

Iowa seeing thousands more vaccinated despite weather

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Iowa continues to see thousands of people vaccinated, despite a weather system that has pushed freezing air and snow into the state in recent days.

The Iowa Department of Public Health reported that there are now more people in Iowa who have received at least one COVID-19 vaccination dose than the number who have been infected by the coronavirus. By midday Tuesday, more than 487,000 people had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

The state’s online virus-tracking dashboard showed more than 356,000 cases had been confirmed in the state. Still, hospitalizations for the virus in Iowa have ticked up in recent days, with 40 people admitted to Iowa hospitals in the last day.

Vaccination clinics

Douglas County

Until further notice, Douglas County clinics will provide COVID-19 vaccinations to eligible residents at the following times and locations:

TUE/WED – Christ Community Church, located at 404 S. 108th St., clinics will provide vaccinations from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
WED/FRI – CHI Immanuel Medical Center, located at 72nd Street and Sorensen Parkway, vaccinations will be given from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
THU/SUN – Nebraska Medicine Testing & Vaccination Clinic, located at 144th Street and Millard Avenue, vaccinations will be given from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays.
SAT – Creighton University’s Rasmussen Center, located at 702 N. 17th St., vaccinations will be administered from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Pottawattamie County

COVID-19 vaccination clinics will be held Fridays, Feb. 12, 19, and 26 at the Mid-America Center.

County residents ages 65 and older are asked to sign up via the Pottawattamie County vaccination website. Anyone needing assistance can also call the Connections Area Agency on Aging at 712-328-2540 to sign up for an appointment over the phone.

COVID-19: Vaccinating the community
Why do some people have more side effects with the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine? How soon will other vaccines hit the market? Why do you still have to wear a mask after you've gotten your shots? Kelly Cawcutt, MD, and Jasmine Marcelin, MC, both infectious disease experts join us live to answer these questions and many more.
Posted by Nebraska Medicine on Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Off-line help

NEBRASKA VACCINE HOTLINE: Gov. Pete Ricketts has asked Nebraskans to call 402-552-6645 or toll-free at 833-998-2275 for more information on the Nebraska COVID-19 vaccination process. DO NOT call your local health department.

TEST NEBRASKA HOTLINE: To get answers about Test Nebraska tests, results, communications, etc., call 402-207-9377.

IOWA VACCINE HOTLINE: Older or home-bound Iowans looking for help scheduling a COVID-19 vaccination appointment can call 1-866-468-7887 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday; or contact Connections Area Agency on Aging at 712-328-2540 or 1-800-432-9209.

REFERENCE NOTE -- 6 News pulls data from Nebraska and Iowa COVID-19 dashboards at 6 p.m. daily. Other reports in this post come from official news releases from area health departments and other authorities as stated.