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Simms sibblings vacinated same day (L-R) Georgia Pearl Simms, Casaundra Simms McCullough, Rev. James Simms, Juanita Simms Doty
Juanita Simms-Doty said that as of Jan. 22, all members of her family living in Mississippi, who qualified to get the COVID-19 vaccine, have gotten their first shots and are looking forward to receiving their second shots.
Yet, we have heard many reports from residents of the state that even though they now qualify to get their vaccines, they are not able to do so. Calling the Health Department to register for an appointment or going online to register for an appointment have brought them no results because appointments are booked immediately after announcements are made that specific groups are eligible to receive the shot.
Mississippi has opened its first drive-thru site for coronavirus vaccinations in the capital city, a move that officials said they hoped would make shots more accessible to African Americans, who have received the vaccine in much smaller numbers than whites.
Coronavirus in Mississippi: 1,227 new cases, 19 deaths reported Monday Brian Broom, Mississippi Clarion Ledger
WATCH: Forrest General, Hattiesburg Clinic discuss COVID-19 vaccine clinic
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The Mississippi State Department of Health reported 1,227 new cases of the coronavirus and 19 coronavirus-related deaths on Sunday.
Since the virus hit the state in March, a total of 240,309 cases and 5,186 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported.
The department reported that as of Friday, the latest figures available, there were 1,402 current hospitalizations of confirmed cases, with 329 in intensive care and 219 on ventilators.
According to a New York Times database on Monday, at least 1,777 new coronavirus deaths and 208,338 new cases were reported in the U.S. Over the past week, there has been an average of 254,866 cases per day, an increase of 38% from the average two weeks earlier.
Reeves: More COVID-19 vaccination sites, appointments for residents coming soon Keisha Rowe, Mississippi Clarion Ledger
WATCH: COVID-19 vaccine distribution expands
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Residents in Mississippi who are eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccinations may soon have more opportunities to actually get them.
In a series of tweets Friday, Gov. Tate Reeves said there are plans to double the number of vaccination sites and total appointments across the state in the coming days. The number of days those sites will be open will also be doubled, he said.
If implemented, that would mean the total number of appointments for residents would go from 8,000 to 30,000, Reeves said.