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On Thursday, we were informed by the District 4 Public Health that there are still plenty of vaccine appointments available.

On Friday, our staff attempted to make an appointment to see if there were still availabe appointments, and the amount of appointment times around Troup County was endless.

Anyone wanting to get a COVID-19 vaccine has plenty of chances to get one over the next week.

If someone wants to be vaccinated, now is the chance while the supply is high and the demand is low.

If you can’t drive, call a friend. It typically takes less than 30 minutes and you can schedule a time that works best for you.

According to the Georgia Department of Public Health dashboard, 16% of Troup County residents have received their first shot and 11% are fully vaccinated.

We know Georgia pausing the Johnson & Johnson vaccine might have people worried, but we hope everyone keeps those numbers in perspective. Administration of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was paused on Tuesday out of an abundance of caution after six people in the United States developed blood clots after receiving the vaccine. A total of 6.8 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been administered in the United States.

We can probably all agree that we are tired of masks, and ready for the regulations and rules to be a thing of the past. There’s finally light at the end of the tunnel. That light is there due to the vaccine and thanks to an inevitable fall in cases considering such a large percentage of the population has likely already been exposed to the virus.

We encourage you to do your own research when trying to make a decision.

Everyone has their own background, health issues and risk factors to consider when deciding, but those are good conversations to have with a doctor.

We hope with the availability of the vaccine in our area that the 11% of those fully vaccinated sees a spike in the coming weeks.