But in the outer suburbs south and west of the D.C. region, the vaccination rate drops dramatically. About 53% of adults are fully vaccinated in Stafford and Spotsylvania counties, while 56% are vaccinated in Culpeper County and 61% in Fauquier County. Only about 46% of adults are vaccinated in Warren County.
Health officials in Fauquier County and beyond are turning to community leaders now, hoping they can help bump up the vaccination rates From my heart to yours, I say to you, please get the shot, Pastor Tyronne Champion of Truel Deliverance Ministries says in a public service announcement for VaccinatePiedmont.com.
Doctors and faith leaders in the region have recorded PSAs encouraging people to get vaccinated.
Even though COVID-19 cases have dropped off dramatically in the wake of vaccines, health officials say itâs still important for people who have virus symptoms to get testedâand then stay away from others if theyâre sick to keep the disease from spreading.
âWhat we are entering, we hope, is an era when we have more isolated cases, and any time you have that, in some ways, itâs like playing a game of whack-a-mole,â said April Achter, population health coordinator with the Rappahannock-Rapidan Health District, which includes Culpeper, Fauquier and Orange counties.
By isolating people who test positive and notifying those who have been in close contact with them, health officials say theyâre better able to take a âwhackâ down the virus spread.
When Dr. Kurt Graham realized the âperilously lowâ vaccination rate at his facility, he implored his co-workers to take a shot.
Heâs the medical director at Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Fredericksburg, which deals with patients recovering from strokes or physical deterioration after long hospital stays.
He learned on Monday that only about 42 percent of Encompass staff had been vaccinated, a rate comparable to what heâs heard anecdotally for health care workers at hospitals and nursing homes in the Fredericksburg area. He immediately penned a letter to staff, saying he was reluctant to ask them to step outside their comfort zone, but even more worried about seeing them or patients hospitalized with COVID-19.
Health districts across the Fredericksburg region are ready for the news Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday: Anyone in Virginia age 16 and older who wants a COVID-19 vaccine will be eligible for it starting April 18.
Thatâs almost two weeks ahead of President Joe Bidenâs goal of having the general public eligible for shots by May 1.
âWeâre on the cusp of open eligibility. It is really just days away and thatâs a great thing for our community,â Dr. Mike McDermott, CEO of Mary Washington Hospital, said during an âAsk the Mayorâ session recorded this week with Fredericksburg Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. âItâs the best health decision that you can make for yourself, and so I encourage everybody to get vaccinated as quickly as possible.â