About half Virginia’s adults have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose

Nearly half of all adults in Virginia — about 3.3 million people — have rolled up their sleeves at least once for a coronavirus vaccine.

Almost 24% percent of the population is now fully vaccinated against the disease, according to the Virginia Department of Health, and 39% has received a first dose.

And as of today, it’s off to the races: All Virginians ages 16 and older are eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

With the expansion to the general adult population, aka Phase 2 of the vaccine rollout, most people will still need appointments to get shots, but the Northam administration says anyone who wants a shot will be able to get one before June. Residents may now find their own through the Vaccinate Virginia system, which previously operated as a centralized waitlist.

Since January, the state has avoided another pandemic surge, but progress on driving down COVID-19 cases has stalled, with most localities experiencing infections at double the rates of last summer.

Hospitalizations among seniors over age 70 are declining, likely because they were prioritized for early vaccinations, while overall rates have somewhat leveled off.

Now Virginians between 50 and 69 are going to the hospital more than last summer and fall, according to an analysis by the state health department and UVA Biocomplexity Institute. A new forecast suggests the combination of relaxed prevention methods, an under-vaccinated population and a dominant U.K. variant could lead to another peak in early July.

To lessen the impact, public health officials are calling on residents to keep wearing masks, staying 6 feet from others and washing their hands frequently while more people get shots.

Over the past week, 6.1% of standard nasal swab tests are coming back positive for the virus statewide.

So far, there have been about 501,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 10,549 suspected deaths.

In Eastern Virginia, about 75% of hospital beds are occupied, according to data from the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association. Intensive care unit hospitalizations have decreased for the past three weeks, and emergency room visits for coronavirus-like symptoms have fallen for more than a week.

Virginia Beach’s case counts have continued to be the region’s highest, with 560 newly confirmed positive cases, followed by Norfolk with 322 and Chesapeake with 285.

High caseloads are expected in bigger cities, but some localities with fewer people saw greater rates of new cases per capita. Franklin had the highest rate of infections in Hampton Roads, with about 61 per 100,000 people. By comparison, Virginia Beach had 18, and Norfolk had 19.

During the past week, 26 people were reported to have died of the virus in Hampton Roads: six in Virginia Beach; four each in Chesapeake, Newport News and Portsmouth; three in Hampton; two in Norfolk; and one each in Franklin and Isle of Wight and Middlesex counties.

The number of coronavirus cases in the United States rose to 31.5 million last week, according to Johns Hopkins University, and about 565,000 Americans have died. Around the globe, 139.3 million people have had confirmed infections, with 3 million deaths.

Health experts maintain that vaccines will be the most powerful tool in ending the pandemic.

Despite the state’s decision to stop using the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine while the federal government investigates it, Virginia still administered an average of 78,000 shots a day, an increase of about 1,000 more daily over last week.

About 2 million Virginians had been fully inoculated as of Friday. Those figures don’t include the 280,000 people in the state who have been vaccinated through the military, Veterans Affairs and federal prisons.

Here’s a look at the pandemic around the region for the past week:

Virginia Beach reported 560 new cases, with a daily case average of 80, up from 78 a week ago.

Norfolk reported 322 new cases, with a daily case average of 46, down from 50.

Newport News reported 261 new cases, with a daily case average of 37, down from 40.

Chesapeake reported 285 new cases, with a daily case average of 41, up from 38.

Portsmouth reported 139 new cases, with a daily case average of 20, down from 22.

Hampton reported 186 new cases, with a daily case average of 27, flat with the previous week.

James City County reported 82 new cases, with a daily case average of 12, up from 10.

York County reported 48 new cases, with a daily case average of seven, down from 10.

Suffolk reported 118 new cases, with a daily case average of 17, up from 16.

Williamsburg reported 17 new cases, with a daily case average of two, down from four.

For other pandemic data, go to www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus.

The vaccinate.virginia.gov site will now link to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vaccine Finder website, which has a searchable map-based tool for locating shots. For phone assistance, call 1-877-VAX-IN-VA.

Elisha Sauers, 757-839-4754, elisha.sauers@pilotonline.com