Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Tuesday in a press conference said along with receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, new shipments of the federally-approved vaccines are coming to the state.
The new shipment of vaccines, however, is less than anticipated. Pfizer confirmed a third shipment of 34,125 doses to the state, with another upcoming shipment expected to arrive in January. As of Tuesday, Beshear said that at least 8,839 Kentuckians have been vaccinated.
At the Thomson-Hood Verteran Center near Lexington that recently suffered an outbreak, 90 veterans and more than 100 staff were said to be vaccinated.
“We have certainly stopped the exponential growth we were seeing,” Beshear said.
Beshear reported 3,057 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday. The test positivity rate for the state is currently 8.48%. 28 new deaths were also reported. The total number of cases in the case is at 247,344, with 2,440 total deaths.
Beshear continued to encourage the use of green lights to honor those who’ve passed away from COVID-19.
Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Steven Stack said Tuesday marks a historic moment in the pandemic, given the fast development of the vaccines. He said the COVID-19 vaccine development took less than a year, and the effectiveness shows to be as high as 95% after the second dose. Stack said the side effects are typical, such as a light temperature, aches, and fatigue.
