Seneca, Wyandot counties see shots surge after Vax-A-Million

Health leaders in two area counties that saw a spike in vaccinations after the state's Vax-a-Million lottery was announced say they're encouraged, but they'd like to continue getting more people vaccinated. Gov. Mike DeWine announced on May 24 that both Seneca and Wyandot counties were among Ohio's top 10 counties for vaccination increases in the wake of the Vax-a-Million announcement. Seneca County ranked fourth and saw a 138% increase, while Wyandot County ranked fifth and saw a 129% increase. Despite the increases, both counties still rank below the state average for the total percentage of residents vaccinated. In information updated by the Ohio Department of Health on Tuesday afternoon, 20,911 Seneca County residents, or 37.9% of the county's population, have received at least one dose of vaccine. And 8,362 Wyandot County residents, 38.41% of the county's population, have received at least one dose. Statewide, 5,310,588 Ohioans have received at least one dose of vaccine. That is 45.43% of the state's population. Seneca County Health Commissioner Anne Goon said the county saw a jump from about 35 new people starting the vaccine each day to an average of 89 per day after the Vax-a-Million announcement. "That is a significant increase," she said. She noted, however, that 12- to 15-year-olds became eligible for the vaccine around the same time, so not all of the increase was due to adults jumping on board because of their shot at $1 million. And by last week, the number dropped to an average of 64 people starting the vaccine per day. Goon said another contributing factor is that some Seneca County businesses held on-site vaccination clinics, which meant that on some days, larger numbers of people got vaccinated at once. Jeff Ritchey, director of environmental health at Wyandot County Public Health, said the health department is encouraged that more people are getting vaccinated. He said the health department wants to continue getting more people vaccinated and would, at clinics, try to make the vaccine "as available as possible" to community members. Goon said the Seneca County General Health District has found some success allowing walk-in vaccinations. She said she would love to go out to more sites around the county, to make the vaccine more accessible, but she doesn't have the nursing staff to allow for it. "It is challenging" to get the message out, too, Goon said. Some people want to wait, while others don't want to get vaccinated at all. "Some just have questions, but they don't know where to go with those questions," Goon said. Ideally, she said, the vaccine would be available at doctors' offices, as "that's who most people trust the most." But, she said, there are challenges involved in storage and handling requirements, and vaccines currently come in vials of five or 10 doses, rather than individual doses, making it harder to vaccinate people at doctors' offices without the risk of waste. Goon said some communities in Seneca County have higher vaccination rates than others. A portion of Fostoria has the lowest rate in the county, but is adjacent to the area with the highest rate. In general, she said, the northwest corner of Seneca County has the lowest vaccination rate. Vax-a-Million "certainly has stirred interest," Goon said. While she is aware some people have issues with the vaccine lottery, said said, "the more people we get vaccinated, the better." Arthurs: 419-427-8494