Governor Ralph Northam delivered some good news during an update on Virginia’s continued COVID-19 response Wednesday: case numbers are trending down and vaccinations are up. The state has a few new tools as well.
A new statewide pre-registration system for COVID-19 vaccines went live earlier this week.
Northam said the online portal has already seen a lot of traffic.
“At the peak, the new site was getting 300 registrations per minute and it averaged 150 registrations per minute,” the governor said.
More than 240,000 Virginians have registered through the portal so far.
The state has also set up a call center to help people through the process. It can be reached at 877-VAX-IN-VA. Northam said that will help people who might not have access to the internet or would prefer to talk with an individual while signing up for a shot.
The center has English and Spanish-speaking staffers.
“Or you can get a call back to speak to someone in 100 other languages," he explained Wednesday. "In addition, the call center will prioritize callers aged 75 and up and those who speak Spanish.”
Northam said Virginia has administered 1.4 million doses so far and is receiving about 130,000 first shots from the federal government per week.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
