Too few Kentuckians have the updated COVID-19 vaccine. Here’s where the rates are low

Only 12% of Kentuckians eligible for the bivalent COVID-19 vaccine booster have received it, according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Gov. Andy Beshear says that deficit is making Kentucky more vulnerable to the disease’s most serious effects, along with its fast-spreading variants.

“Unfortunately, current data from the CDC indicates that only 12% of Kentuckians 5 years or older have gotten the new booster. We believe the new booster is safe and effective, and that it provides very significant protection against severe illness or death (from COVID-19) for those that get it,” Beshear told the media during his weekly press conference Thursday.

“We believe that it is effective even against the newest variant that we are learning more about,” Beshear added, referring to subvariant XBB.1.5. Public health experts are calling it the most contagious coronavirus strain yet.

The bivalent booster is formulated to renew the recipient’s immune protections against the original coronavirus strain, as well as offer better protection against COVID-19 caused by the omicron variant, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

As the virus continues to spread and evolve, new variants emerge and immunity levels in vaccine recipients and people who’ve contracted and recovered gradually decays. That’s why government officials have been urging the public to keep their protection against COVID-19 up to date.

Enter your zip code and find a vaccine near you at vaccines.gov.

Central Kentucky vaccination rates

In Fayette County, uptake of the bivalent booster stands at about 18%, with more than 54,000 doses administered, per the CDC.

It’s not a high number, but it still makes Fayette one of top counties in Kentucky for public uptake of the updated booster. Other top counties for participation include Woodford (19.3%), Campbell (17.1%), Franklin (16.9%) and Jefferson (16.4%).

The Kentucky counties where bivalent dose rates are lowest are concentrated in the southern and eastern parts of the state.

Clay County and Knox County appear to be tied with the lowest rates at 4.4%. The CDC reports 1,294 doses have been administered in Knox County, while 833 have been given in neighboring Clay County.

Note: The above graphic will update automatically as new data becomes available.

What’s the current state of the coronavirus in Kentucky?

Kentucky added 3,743 cases of COVID-19 over the course of the previous week, according to the CDC’s tracking tool for the virus, updated every Thursday evening.

That’s a decline from the previous week’s total, which was 5,116 new cases.

Kentucky’s positivity rate still stands between 10 and 14.9%, according to CDC data. That said, this metric has become less reliable over time because it does not include all test results.

As for additional deaths from the disease, the latest CDC report puts that figure at 59 Kentuckians lost between Jan. 12 and 19. All told, Kentucky has counted more than 17,000 people dead to COVID-19, the latest available report from the state’s Department for Public Health shows.

In terms of community levels of COVID-19 – which take into account weekly averages of new infections, hospital admissions and bed capacity – Kentucky has fewer than a dozen counties at high.

These counties include Boyd, Carter, Elliott, Greenup, Lawrence, Martin, Menifee, Morgan, Perry, Pike and Rowan.

Another 44 counties are facing medium community levels of COVID-19, according to the CDC. That makes slightly fewer medium-level counties than the previous reporting week, which had 49.

Fayette County is among the medium-level counties again this week.

According to CDC guidance, people in counties at high levels should pivot to wearing masks indoors when in public, and if they’re vulnerable for severe COVID-19, consider limiting public activities where they could be exposed.

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