HYANNIS A World War II combat engineer during the Battle of the Bulge, Curtis Shaw, of West Yarmouth, knows that at age 97 he faces a potentially deadly enemy in the form of COVID-19.
Shaw got some help in fighting the viral foe Wednesday during a COVID-19 vaccination drive-up clinic at the Hyannis Veterans Administration Clinic. The vaccines were given to U.S. military veterans aged 85 and older.
“Oh, it’s wonderful,” said Shaw as he waited in his car for the shot. “The VA has done a great job.”
By noon the clinic had delivered the first dose of the two-shot Moderna vaccine to 107 elderly veterans and is scheduled to vaccinate another 100 at a second clinic Thursday morning with shots provided by the VA in Washington, D.C.
Mark Forest was only a few hours into his new role as Barnstable County Commissioner when he started getting barraged by constituent questions about the COVID-19 vaccine.
“My phone hasn’t stopped ringing,” Forest said during a meeting of the three Barnstable County commissioners Wednesday.
“We’re getting calls from people who are upset,” said Forest, who was sworn in Monday.
People want to know, “Who do I call? Where do I go?” Forest said.
Under the three-phase vaccination schedule unveiled by Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration Dec. 9, vaccination clinics will start Monday across the state for first responders, who are in group three of phase one.
The Barnstable County District Attorney’s Office last month rolled out a new drug overdose database that it hopes will help get more people into treatment programs.
The month of December has seen a record-high number of COVID-19 hospitalizations on Cape Cod as well as more than double the number of new cases of the virus that were reported in November.
Vaccinations are ongoing for members of the healthcare community. Within the next couple of weeks, vaccinations are expected to start being administered to people who work in public safety fields, Sandwich Fire Chief John J. Burke said.
Tighter restrictions are in effect across the state until at least January 9 in an effort to minimize the post-holiday spread of COVID-19. Governor Charles D. Baker Jr. said his administration will be evaluating these restrictions to determine if they can be lifted at that time or if further measures will be necessary.
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