Children between the ages of 6 months and 5 years old can now receive the COVID-19 vaccine at the Watson Health Center on LincolnHealth’s Miles Campus, according to hospital spokesperson John Martins.
An appointment must be made by calling 563-4250. The vaccine being offered is the two-dose Moderna series. The federal Food and Drug Administration recently approved the vaccine for emergency use authorization for the younger age group. Now anyone six months and older can receive the vaccine.
“Recent trials have shown the vaccine to be effective in combating COVID-19 and reducing the severity of the illness if a child tests positive for COVID-19,” according to a press release announcing the change.
Call the MaineHealth Vaccine Assistant at 1-877-780-7545 or email vaccine@mainehealth.org for an appointment. An appointment is preferred and can be made by calling a Lincoln Medical Partners office or by visiting vaccine.mainehealth.org.
MaineHealth is maintaining a database of COVID-19 information that can be accessed at mainehealth.org/coronavirus-COVID-19/what-to-do.
The health system also recommends staying home when sick, testing for COVID-19 in the event of symptoms or contact with a COVID-19-positive person, and seeking care when necessary.
LincolnHealth saw a slight uptick in the number of positive cases of COVID-19 in the past week, but the number of tests essentially held steady, Martin said in an email.
He also said that the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention community level transmission metric remains “low” in Lincoln County, and hospitalizations across the MaineHealth system continue to improve.
From June 20-26, LincolnHealth conducted 255 tests for COVID-19 with 25 positives, for a positivity rate of 9.84%, up from 6.51% the week prior.
According to Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention data current through Tuesday, June 28, since COVID-19 arrived in Lincoln County in March 2020, 5,899 residents have had the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus – 4,956 confirmed cases and 943 probable. Fifty-eight cases have been identified in Lincoln County residents in the past week. Two more people have been hospitalized in the past week, for a total of 83.
Lincoln County has a “moderate to high” rate of vaccine doses administered per 100,000 residents relative to other counties in the state at 227,712.65. The number does not represent fully vaccinated individuals and, since the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines both require two doses, the number can be higher than 100,000.
The census data for Lincoln County provided by the Maine CDC lists a population of 34,634. Of those residents, 26,777, or 77.31%, have received their first dose of the vaccine and 27,434, or 79.21%, have received the second and final dose, according to the agency’s data.
A total of 78,866 doses of vaccine have been administered, up 458 doses from last week. Those counted in the final dose category have either received the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the single shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
There have been 24,655 additional or booster shots given to Lincoln County residents.
According to a database maintained by the Maine CDC, vaccine appointments can be requested at Hannaford in Damariscotta, Walgreens in Damariscotta and Boothbay Harbor, and Wiscasset Family Medicine.
Patients of Sheepscot Valley Health Center in Coopers Mills can call 549-7581 to make an appointment for a vaccine.
To schedule an appointment at Hannaford, go to hannaford.com/pharmacy/covid-19-vaccine.
To schedule an appointment at Walgreens, go to walgreens.com/schedulevaccine or call 1-800-WALGREENS.
To schedule an appointment at Wiscasset Family Medicine, call 882-6008.
According to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center, the seven-day average positivity rate for Maine is 6.24%, down from 6.96% last week.
State COVID-19 numbers
According to data current as of June 28, the Maine CDC has reported 267,956 COVID-19 cases in Maine, an increase of 1,724 from the week before. Of those cases, 75,295 are probable.
There have been 5,147 hospitalizations in the state, including 41 reported in the past week. There have been 2,413 deaths so far from COVID-19 in Maine, including four reported in the last week. The statewide case rate is 2,014.9 per 10,000 people, up from 2,002.1 last week.
