NASHVILLE, Tennessee (WTVF) – Tennessee has some of the worst COVID-19 vaccination rates in the country, targeting all but two states in the percentage of adults considered to be fully vaccinated, an analysis by NewsChannel 5 is investigating discovered.
Tonight at 6 o’clock: NewsChannel 5 visits the county with the lowest vaccination rates
Data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) show that Tennessee ranks 48th out of 50 states in the percentage of fully vaccinated adults, 48 in the percentage of adults who have received at least one dose, 47 in the number of doses administered per 100,000 residents and 45 percent of people aged 65 and over now vaccinated.
“I’m worried about these numbers for obvious reasons,” said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
“We would like to get to what we call ‘herd immunity’ – where it is much more difficult for the virus to spread among us because such a large proportion of the adult population is vaccinated – and we are never close. that’s why. ”
Tennessee 48of among adult vaccinations
CDC data show that only 23.4% of Tennessee adults have been completely vaccinated. Only Alabama and Georgia have lower records (by 22.1 and 21.4 percent, respectively).
Another southern state, Arkansas, is in the top five, along with Utah.
In contrast, Alaska leads the country with almost 40% of its adults fully vaccinated, followed by New Mexico at 38.2% and South Dakota at 37.8%.
Rhode Island and Maine complete the top five.
Neighboring northern Tennessee, Kentucky, is the 22nd in the country, with 31.1 percent of its adults fully vaccinated.
In addition, only 38.8 percent of Tennessee adults received at least one dose of vaccine, with only Alabama and Mississippi showing lower numbers than the volunteer state on this front.
But New Hampshire far exceeds other states in the percentage of adults receiving at least one dose, with a success rate of 65.2 percent, according to CDC data.
New Mexico, Connecticut, Maine and Massachusetts are next in line.
Kentucky ranks 27th in the country, with 46.6% of adults receiving at least one dose.
Tennessee 45 among senior vaccinations
Tennessee is also ranked 45th in the country in the percentage of adults over the age of 65 who have been fully vaccinated and in the percentage of the elderly who have received at least one dose.
The CDC says 54.9 percent of seniors in Tennessee have been completely vaccinated, compared to the staggering 78.4 percent in Rhode Island.
“We started like a burning house, but it looks like we slipped,” Schaffner said.
The number of vaccines left in Tennessee cannot be attributed to the lack of vaccines.
The latest CDC numbers show that Tennessee received 4,671,560 doses of the vaccine, but administered only 3,299,283 of them.
This represents 67.8 percent, ranking the state 43rd out of 50 states in using its vaccine supply.
It is not known how many doses Tennessee could have, it simply did not ask to be shipped to the state.
“Impatient beavers are still appearing, those first acceptors,” Schaffner said.
“But especially in our rural areas – and we, a lot of people living in rural areas – there are people who do not show up for vaccination. We have ample space for meetings, and these appointments are not fulfilled. ”
County by county comparisons
CDC data show that the small Moore County – home of the Jack Daniel Distillery – has the worst COVID-19 vaccination rates in the state’s 95 counties.
Only 10.5% of adults in Moore County were completely vaccinated, compared to 33.8% in Loudon County, outside Knoxville and 29.5% in Williamson County.
Metro Nashville-Davidson County ranks 19th with 24.8% fully vaccinated.
Of those aged 65 and over, 26.3 percent of Moore County seniors were completely vaccinated, far from the 72.7 percent in Williamson and Meigs counties.
This compares to 59.7 percent in Davidson, which ranks 13th.
Moore County Mayor Bonnie Mayor questioned the numbers, noting that Moore County shares zip codes with several neighboring counties.
However, he acknowledged that there are skeptics.
“The same argument or the same fear you hear everywhere is the same in Moore County,” Lewis said.
“You know, enough research has been done? Will it change my DNA? Whatever that discussion is. But there are also some people who don’t want two dates for nothing, so they’ll wait for Johnson & Johnson and get a single shot and leave. ”
That’s before the federal and state governments take a break from distributing the J&J vaccine.
Which is the solution?
Dr. Schaffner said the answer is “leadership, leadership and leadership.”
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has been more disabled in his comments about COVID vaccines than other political figures. The Williamson County Republican says he received a vaccine, but unlike many of his colleagues, Lee did not share photos of himself setting an example.
The state also spent millions of dollars on an advertising campaign urging Tennessee to wear masks, but did not produce ads to support vaccinations.
“I think we need our political leaders, both at the state and local levels, to make unequivocal statements that everyone should be vaccinated – everyone!” Said Schaffner.
The infectious disease expert also called on religious and business leaders to call for vaccinations.
But Mayor Lewis said that although she did not shy away from supporting her own vaccination decision, that is where her plea ends.
“I don’t do my job to change someone’s mind,” Lewis said. “I think people are quite educated. They will find out the facts of their own families. ”
NewsChannel 5 is investigating followed, “So if people believe something that’s not true, don’t you think it’s your job to try to convince them of science?”
“I shared the science,” Lewis insisted. “But as far as I’m convinced, I’m not going to try to prove you wrong, okay?” That’s not my job. ”
Potential concern if trends continue
Dr. Schaffner said he was worried about what might happen if more were not done to combat misinformation across the state.
“In the state of Tennessee, if we can’t increase these numbers, we will have spots in our population that are well vaccinated, they will be relatively exempt,” he explained.
“But in the vaccinated part, this virus will continue. It will continue to be transmitted and will take neighbors and friends and family members and put them in the hospital. ”
Special section: COVID investigations