Blue Earth County offering N99 masks, vaccine clinics
Feb. 9—MANKATO — Blue Earth County is hosting a series of weekly COVID-19 vaccine and booster clinics starting Thursday, as well as immediately distributing 5,000 N99 masks.
The vaccine clinics will be held from 1-4 p.m. at the Blue Earth County Government Center — 410 S. 5th St. — each Thursday starting this week and running until at least March 10.
They'll be the first times the county offered clinics with all of first and second doses, boosters and vaccines for individuals 5 and older available.
Despite booster doses offering higher levels of protection against COVID-19 deaths and serious illnesses, data shows only about half of Minnesotans who received initial vaccinations have sought boosters.
County-level booster data isn't publicly available, but about 60% of Blue Earth County residents received initial vaccinations. The rate is below the statewide average of 65% and above the nine-county region's overall rate of 58.5%
The county will monitor demand at the five scheduled clinics before deciding if more are needed, said Kelley Haeder, Blue Earth County's public health supervisor.
Approval for children younger than 5 will likely be the last major phase of the country's vaccination rollout. Considering the low booster rates and slow uptake by parents on vaccines for children age 5 and older, Eric Weller anticipates more people will take a wait-and-see approach for the next eligible age group.
Weller, coordinator of the South Central Health Care Coalition, said discussions are ongoing about how to handle the rollout.
"We're getting ready to see who's going to administer that," he said. "That planning has started in earnest."
As health officials continue to encourage vaccines as a way to limit hospitalizations and deaths, counties across the state started providing another layer of protection this week. Blue Earth County's allotment of 5,000 N99 masks, available for free at the government center and public libraries in Mankato, Lake Crystal and Mapleton, came courtesy of Minnesota's mask distribution strategy from the Biden Administration.
Well-fitting masks such as N99s offer higher levels of protection against COVID-19, Haeder said.
"Different masks have different levels of protection," she said. "N99 masks filter out more than surgical masks, which filter out more than cloth masks."
Higher-grade mask distributions come as the more contagious omicron variant continues to circulate widely in area communities. Even as omicron's wave appears to be on the downslope, its peak was so high that the decline still produces what would be close to record highs during previous waves.
Along with a bin at the government center and masks at the public libraries, the county distributed masks to Amboy, Vernon Center and other cities to distribute. The masks are free, with a note on the bin in Mankato asking people to use one each.
"We just want to make sure these masks are available for any residents who wants or needs them," Haeder said.
Local pharmacies also received allotments of masks to distribute for free while supplies last.
For more information on the county's vaccine clinics, go to www.blueearthcountymn.gov/1532/COVID-19.
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