Morris County has the highest rate per capita of any county in New Jersey for fully vaccinating people over the age of 65 and the second-highest rate for fully vaccinating people over age 18, according to a review of state and federal data.
Comparing inoculations to population numbers as of April 10, the Morris County Board of County Commissioners was provided an outline of the data in a PowerPoint presentation by Commissioner John Krickus during a public meeting Thursday night.
“Inoculation efforts throughout Morris County, from our Morris County Regional COVID-19 Vaccination Center in Rockaway Township to the many other vaccination centers within our county, have been leading the state since the vaccination effort began in New Jersey, even when vaccine supplies remained difficult to obtain,” Commissioner Krickus said.
“I think we should consider ourselves fortunate and remain thankful to the healthcare providers and public servants who have made this possible.”
Morris County operates the Regional Center in partnership with Atlantic Health System and the State of New Jersey.
As of April 10, 376,618 vaccines had been administered either through the Regional Vaccination Center or various hospitals, pharmacies, stores and medical offices delivering inoculations over the past four months in Morris County.
Data from the state and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed 232,196 adults were provided with one shot and 151,772 were fully vaccinated through those centers as of April 10 in Morris County, which has an adult population of about 380,000.
“We are about two weeks away in Morris County from meeting the state goal of getting the equivalent of 75 percent of our population with at least their first shot,” Commissioner Krickus said.
In partnership with Atlantic Health System, Morris County launched a Special Needs Vaccination Initiative in late March that, to date provided 415 vaccines to people in elderly care, behavioral health clients and childcare workers.
People working in food pantries and other front-line human services staff also were inoculated, as Zufall Health and the federal pharmacy program assisted with vaccinating vulnerable populations, such as those who are homeless.
A Homebound Vaccination Initiative to reach people who cannot leave their living spaces had been initiated but was paused due to the recent federal halt to the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccination.