Officials: 1/2 of Kenosha Co. residents age 65+ have received vaccine
KENOSHA, Wis. - Half of Kenosha County residents age 65 and older have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of Wednesday, Feb. 17, Health Officer Dr. Jen Freiheit announced.
In a news release, officials said Kenosha County reached the 50% milestone in just three weeks since the state opened vaccine eligibility to residents 65 and older. The statewide rate of at least one dose of the vaccine for that population is around 42%.
"While we still have a long way to go to reach our herd immunity goal of vaccinating 75% of our county’s entire population, we are proud to have already reached half of this most vulnerable population," Freiheit said.
Freiheit added that the county aims to get more residents age 65 and older vaccinated in the coming weeks before Wisconsin opens vaccinations to additional population groups in March.
To that end, Kenosha County earlier this month opened a call center for vaccine-eligible individuals without internet access to schedule appointments. Operators are available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, at 262-605-6799. Calls can be fielded in English or Spanish.
A list of local vaccine providers and links to their online registration systems also remains available on the Kenosha County COVID-19 Response Hub website, or by clicking the flashing red button at the top of the homepage at kenoshacounty.org.
As of Wednesday, 12.6% of Kenosha County’s total population, or 21,538 residents, had received at least one dose of the vaccine. Those who have received both doses and are fully vaccinated comprise 3.8% of the population, or 6,521 residents.
The Kenosha County Public Health COVID-19 Vaccination Clinics have vaccinated more than 8,500 people total to date.
In the 65-plus age group, 12,390 Kenosha County residents have received the first dose and 1,844 have received both doses. The latter figure represents 7.5% of the county’s total 65 and older population of 24,756.
To reach the 75% herd immunity goal, officials said, 127,500 residents will need to be fully vaccinated.
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