RALEIGH, N.C. — Governor Roy Cooper announced Thursday that people with high-risk medical conditions in Group 4 will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine starting March 17th in North Carolina.
Health officials say the rest of Group 4 will be eligible to get the vaccine on April 7th.
“This move to Group 4 is good news,” said Governor Cooper. “I know there are many efforts across the state getting vaccines to people as quickly and fairly as possible and I want our providers to know that their work is making all the difference.”
Health officials say as with previous eligibility changes, some vaccine providers may not be able to start vaccinating those in Group 4 if there is still a high demand for the vaccine in Groups 1 through 3.
“We are very fortunate to now have three tested, safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines that keep people out of the hospital and prevent death from this virus,” said Secretary Cohen. “With improving supplies, North Carolina can get more people vaccinated sooner and meet our goals to provide equitable access to vaccinations in every community in the state.”
Over 1.1. million North Carolinians have received the full series of the vaccine, and while supply is still limited, federal authorities are sending additional doses to the state to help vaccinate even more people, according to a news release.
Officials say North Carolina continues to focus on vaccine equity, and in the past four weeks more than 20 percent of the state’s first doses have been administered to Black residents.
Bloomberg News even recognized the state on Sunday as the leader in the Nation for reporting demographic data on who has received the vaccine down to the county level.
