Most coronavirus deaths are preventable. 

That’s the message from state and local health officials as cases of COVID-19 continue to surge in North Carolina due to the delta variant. 

Wayne County Health Department Medical Director Dr. James Stackhouse gave an update on the latest COVID trends at Tuesday’s county board meeting.

Stackhouse says the county is averaging 70-80 new cases of COVID-19 per day.

He says two doses of vaccine are still very effective at preventing serious illness, even as the virus changes.

9 out of 10 of the people dying from COVID in the last two months have been unvaccinated.

Dr. Stackhouse says the Health Department is preparing to administer booster (3rd) doses to already-vaccinated residents once guidelines are set by the federal government. 

Wayne County Health Director Dr. Brenda Weis told the county commissioners they’re still dealing with a shortage of nurses.

For instance, the Communicable Disease branch has six nurse vacancies, and that’s the section that deals with COVID, TB, influenza, and more.

The COVID-19 vaccine is still available through the Wayne County Health Department.

Appointments to receive your shot can be made at WayneGov.com/Vaccine.