Northborough – Northborough Health Agent Kristin Black had good news to share at the Jan. 25 Board of Selectmen meeting – COVID-19 cases are dropping off after the holiday surge. Northborough is back down to moderate risk level. The town is gearing up for vaccinations.
Black said to be sure to keep your guard up, and to continue wearing masks and social distancing.
The state will start Phase 2 of the vaccination plan on Monday, Feb. 1.
Black said that the town had over 3,000 people sign up for its vaccine notifications in 13 days.
The bigger question is where will residents be able to be vaccinated. That information will be included soon on the town webpage. The closest sites currently include UMass Memorial Marlborough Hospital, UMASS Memorial Campus in Worcester and Central Mass Allergy and Asthma Care in Worcester. Pharmacies, hospitals, and mass vaccination sites are also being added as locations. Appointments are required.
Black said her department is working to assist residents who may struggle to find a vaccination site.
“The key thing is these sites are opening,” she said. “The sites are not the problem, the vaccinators are not the problem. The supply is the problem at this point.”
Northborough is moving forward to opening its own vaccination site for residents only in February. The support of the Fire Department staff has been critical in this process.
“We have all of our approval and I did submit our first request for the vaccine,” Black said.
She estimated that with available staff they could administer 600 vaccines per week, two days per week. The state, however, has a request limit of only 100 per week per site.
“At that rate, we would vaccinate a third of our population in two years,” Black said. “It’s not what we were hoping for, but I don’t think this was all for naught. We are setting up the process, we are setting up the infrastructure. More vaccines will become available.”
She does stress not to forget about the safety protocols followed for months even after vaccination.
“It’s not magical when you get the vaccine that your life won’t totally change, but you are going to be less likely for serious illness,” she said.
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