<div class="intro-text"> Gadsden County’s COVID-19 numbers seemingly continue to improve. According to the Florida Department of Health’s COVID-19 dashboard, no new cases were reported on Monday, March 22, and as of Tuesday morning, only 12 new cases were reported in the past week. Also, no new COVID-19 cases have been reported in Gadsden County Schools since March 4, however, schools were out for spring break last week. As of Tuesday, only two cases have reported in Gadsden Schools this month, according to the district’s COVID-19 dashboard. On March 3, it was reported that an employee at Gadsden County High School had tested positive, and on March 4 it was reported that a student at West Gadsden Middle School had tested positive. Earlier this month, Governor Ron DeSantis issued an amended executive order, prioritizing the following for a shot as of March 15: • People 50 and older • Health care personnel in direct contact with patients • Staff and residents of long-term care facilities • People 16-49 who are susceptible to severe COVID-19, as determined by physicians or hospital providers. Federal guidelines allow these additional groups to get vaccinated at federal sites: • K-12 teachers and staff of any age • Pre-K workers and staff of any age • Child care workers of any age It is important to note that not every vaccine provider serves all groups. Homebound adults can email homeboundvaccine@em.myflorida.com to request a vaccine be brought to them. There is no vaccine yet approved for children under 16. To help combat the spread of the deadly virus, the Department of Health in Gadsden County continues to issue weekly vaccines. A COVID-19 vaccination clinic was set up at Beulah Hills Missionary Baptist Church in Gretna on Tuesday, and a vaccination clinic will be set up in Chattahoochee on Friday, March 28 from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at 35 Jefferson Street (Across from City Hall). Pre-registration is required for both the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines. Call (850) 329-0685 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. for more information, or to schedule an appointment. As of Monday, a little more than 22 percent of Gadsden’s population has been vaccinated with at least one dose, and about 14 percent have been fully vaccinated. A total of 16,500 doses of the vaccine have been administered in Gadsden County. Walmart in Quincy also offers the vaccine. For more information call 850-875-3021. </div>
