Vaccine demand declines for 4th straight week in El Paso
CNN
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) As Covid-19 vaccines become more accessible, demand continues to decline.
Data from the Texas Department of State Health Services shows less doses have been administered in El Paso each week for the past several weeks.
The county hit a vaccination peak in early April when more than 72,000 doses were administered in a single week. Last week, the number had dropped to just over 31,000 doses.
El Paso City/County Health Authority Dr. Hector Ocaranza said as more people get vaccinated, more restrictions can be lifted. As of Tuesday morning, more than 48% of El Paso residents age 16 and older had been fully vaccinated. U.S. health experts say reaching herd immunity could require 70-85% of a population to be immune.
El Paso is gearing up to receive hundreds of migrant families scheduled to be flown here from South Texas in an effort that organizers say is well within their ability to provide hospitality even during a pandemic.
The arrival of migrant families is an opportunity for El Paso to do what El Paso has always done: been one of the most hospitable and generous communities there is, said Ruben Garcia, director of the Annunciation House, the El Paso nonprofit providing temporary shelter for migrants and refugees.
Garcia said the Annunciation House is ramping up its shelter capacity to more than 500 beds and testing migrants for COVID-19 before they leave for their destinations. A local church has offered another 30 beds. Project Amistad, a local nonprofit provider of social services, is providing transportation from the shelter to bus stations and the airport. And the city s Office of Emergency Management has made a network of hotel rooms originally set up to quarantine homeless