Smiles, laughter and anticipation filled the room as Monterey County residents received the first dose of their COVID-19 vaccine.
Since early February, the Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System (SVMH) staff has been administering thousands of vaccines to teachers, farmworkers and people over the age of 65 to combat the virus locally.
SVMH administers 700 vaccines per day for five days a week on average so that the vaccination process is as efficient as possible. This has helped Monterey County move closer to the red tier.
“We were trying to get people to follow the safety precautions,” said Karina Rusk, director of public relations and system communications at SVMH. “Now, we’re trying to make sure we get them vaccinated as quickly as possible. Hopefully, we have seen the worst of this.”