Santa Barbara County officials say they re not sure yet how the plan will roll out at the local level; 154 new cases of the virus and four more deaths are reported
How Many People Have Been Vaccinated in Santa Barbara County So Far?
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department has not reported an exact number, but it reported 39,700 first doses as of Feb. 2.
Several thousand more people have been vaccinated through the federal pharmacy program for skilled-nursing and assisted-living residents, and through Marian Regional Medical Center s program through Dignity Health (which had about 13,000 doses so far).
Do-Reynoso said Tuesday that about 64% of residents age 75-plus have been vaccinated, which would be about 20,800 people based on population estimates.
Do-Reynoso said she expects “the pie chart will shift to reflect the diversity in our workforce” as larger groups become eligible for vaccinations.
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Separately, Marian Regional Medical Center receives doses as part of the Dignity Health system, and the CVS and Walgreens pharmacies receive doses directly from manufacturers to help vaccinate people who live in skilled-nursing and assisted-living communities.
In mid-February, the state will start using Blue Shield of California to oversee statewide vaccine distribution, rather than having each county manage its own process, Do-Reynoso said.
COVID-19-Related Deaths Pass 300 in Santa Barbara County
Do-Reynoso said that 67 deaths have been reported in the past two weeks, and another five deaths were reported later on Tuesday.
The five residents were all older than age 70. Two of them lived in Lompoc, two lived in Santa Maria and one lived in the unincorporated North County, according to Public Health.
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The online data dashboard notes that the number of deaths will change as additional cases are reported.
Deaths are reported when a death certificate is processed listing COVID-19 as a cause or a significant condition, according to the county Public Health Department. The process can take several days and up to two months to finalize if pending verification by the county Coroner’s Bureau, a division of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department.
Of the county’s 303 COVID-19-related deaths, 124 residents lived in Santa Maria, 55 in Santa Barbara, 27 in Lompoc, 20 in Goleta, 19 in Orcutt, 17 in the regions of the North County unincorporated area, 14 in the Santa Ynez Valley, 11 in the Montecito-Summerland-Carpinteria area, 10 in the unincorporated area of the Goleta Valley and Gaviota, four in the Lompoc federal prison complex, and one in Isla Vista. One death is pending the geographic area.
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