THE Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force and the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. opened more vaccination sites even as four additional Covid-19 cases were reported on Thursday and Friday, raising the CNMI’s total to 168 since March 28, 2020.
In its two consecutive updates, the task force and CHCC stated that two newly arrived passengers on April 29 and two more on April 30 tested positive for Covid-19.
The four cases were identified through travel screening and confirmed diagnosis through testing upon arrival. The four individuals have been moved to the designated isolation area for close monitoring, and the CHCC Communicable Disease Investigation/Inspection team has already initiated contact tracing for the most immediate contacts of the new confirmed cases including passengers on the same flights.
More vaccinations sites
Following the opening of vaccination sites at the multi-purpose center last week and at Northern Marianas College over the weekend, CHCC and the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force will host the next vaccination outreach event on Saturday, May 8, at the Tanapag Youth Center, from 8 a.m. to 12 noon.
Walk-ins for first-dose Covid-19 vaccinations will be accepted at all vaccination locations.
CHCC and the task force administered 36 Moderna vaccines on Wednesday at the multi-purpose center; and 135 Moderna vaccines and one Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine on Saturday at Northern Marianas College.
As of May 2, 2021, CHCC said, the CNMI had fully vaccinated 18,859 persons, representing approximately 50% of the eligible population.
CHCC has resumed the use of the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine as recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
However, CHCC said, women younger than 50 years old especially should be aware of the rare risk of blood clots with low platelets after vaccination, and that other Covid-19 vaccines are available where this risk has not been seen.
Individuals who want to be vaccinated should pre-register online at vaccinatecnmi.com, call the CHCC call center at (670) 682-SHOT/7468, or register in person at the CHCC call center at IT&E Chalan Laulau.
In addition, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is now available to 16- and 17-year-olds of Rota and Tinian. All necessary forms and information are available at vaccinatecnmi.com. Parents must register for their children, as well as accompany them during the vaccination process.
Mask outdoors
In a separate advisory based on CDC guidance, CHCC said fully vaccinated individuals no longer need to wear a mask outdoors, except in certain crowded settings.
Fully vaccinated individuals are those that are at least two weeks past their final dose.
CHCC also cautions, however, that about half of the adult population have yet to be fully vaccinated in the Commonwealth and that practicing the 3 Ws of wearing a mask, washing hands, and watching the distance is still necessary for crowds where social distancing is not possible and in an indoor setting where unvaccinated people may be present.
According to the CDC, fully vaccinated individuals can now do the following:
• Visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing.
• Visit with unvaccinated people (including children) from a single household who are at low risk for severe Covid-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing.
• Participate in outdoor activities and recreation without a mask, except in certain crowded settings and venues.
CHCC said quarantine protocols in the CNMI will not only depend on whether a person is vaccinated or not but will also continue to be attributed to the risk deemed by CHCC officials.
CHCC and the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force urge those who have not been vaccinated to consider getting vaccinated for a safer CNMI.
Angelito Tapnio receives his first shot of the Moderna vaccine at the vaccination outreach site at Northern Marianas College on May 1, 2021.
Contributed photo
