COVID-19 Situation Update: February 9 | Eastern North Carolina Now

    News Releases:

    As of 12:00 p.m. today:

    Newly Reported Cases: 10,513

    Daily Percent Positive: 20.2%

    NC Currently Hospitalized: 3,812

    NC Total Deaths: 21,482

    Percent of Adult Population at Least Partially Vaccinated: 75%

    Percent of Adult Population Fully Vaccinated: 71%

    More data are available online at covid19.ncdhhs.gov/dashboard.

    Daily Update:

• The North Carolina National Guard (NCNG) is deploying guard members to Alamance Regional Medical Center, part of the Cone Health System, in Burlington, N.C. to support staff and hospital operations. While COVID-19 cases are declining and hospitalizations are starting to show downward trends, the recent Omicron wave strained many hospital systems across the state.
• Wastewater monitoring data from North Carolina are now part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention national COVID Data Tracker (CDT) website. North Carolina was one of the first eight jurisdictions in the CDC's National Wastewater Surveillance System and is one of 13 jurisdictions currently participating in the NWSS and reporting wastewater data in the CDT.
• Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody Kinsley visited and toured King's Pharmacy & Compounding Lab in New Hanover County, a local pharmacy distributing COVID-19 vaccines.
• We want to hear from you: Please take the NCDHHS Dashboard Survey.

    COVID-19 Vaccinations:

• A free COVID-19 vaccine is available to all who want it. Vaccination is now open to everyone 5 and older. Visit MySpot.nc.gov to find a location.
• To strengthen and extend protections against COVID-19, boosters are now available to all North Carolinians 12 and older. You should get a booster as soon as you are eligible.
• If you received the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, you can get your booster five months after your second shot. If you received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, you can get your booster two months after your shot.
• You can choose any brand of COVID-19 vaccine for your booster shot. Limited preliminary evidence suggests that booster doses of one of the two mRNA vaccines - Moderna or Pfizer - more effectively raise antibody levels than a booster dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
• The CDC also recommends a third dose of Pfizer for children ages 5 to 11 who have compromised immune systems.
• To learn more about boosters and to find a spot to take your shot, go here.
• For more information on the COVID-19 vaccines, visit YourSpotYourShot.nc.gov or call the COVID-19 Vaccine Help Center for free at 1-888-675-4567.

    COVID-19 Testing & Treatment:

• If you develop symptoms, get tested immediately and isolate until you receive your test results. If you test positive, follow isolation recommendations. If you do not develop symptoms, get tested at least five days after you last had close contact with someone with COVID-19.
• To find a testing site near you, visit ncdhhs.gov/GetTested. For an up-to-date list of no-cost community testing events, visit the No-Cost Testing Events webpage. Additionally, all North Carolinians can request a free at-home COVID-19 testing kit.
• While vaccines provide the best protection from COVID-19, treatment options such as monoclonal antibodies are available if you have had symptoms of COVID-19 for 10 days or less or have been exposed to COVID-19. If taken early, they can reduce the risk of severe disease, hospitalization, and death. Ask your doctor about monoclonal antibodies, call the Combat COVID Monoclonal Antibodies Call Center at 1-877-332-6585 (English) or 1-877-366-0310 (Spanish), or find treatment near you.

    ICYMI:

• To help meet the unprecedented demand for testing and promote greater equity in test availability, NCDHHS' COVID-19 response team shipped 441,038 rapid antigen test kits across North Carolina since Dec. 23, 2021.
• NCDHHS announced the approval of its staffing support request, in partnership with Atrium Health, to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
• North Carolina households receiving Food and Nutrition Services benefits will continue to receive the maximum amount for their household size for the month of February, NCDHHS announced.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated vaccination data from the U.S. Department of Defense and Federal Bureau of Prisons to more accurately reflect the county of residence for the person vaccinated.

   

    For a full list of the department's videos on COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines, visit the NCDHHS YouTube Channel. Videos can also be downloaded for use on the NCDHHS Vimeo Channel.

   

    For more information and updates on COVID-19, visit covid19.ncdhhs.gov and nc.gov/covid19. Those with COVID-19 vaccine questions can call the COVID-19 Vaccine Help Center at 1-888-675-4567, or visit YourSpotYourShot.nc.gov.
   

    For a full list of the department's videos on COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines, visit the NCDHHS YouTube Channel. Videos can also be downloaded for use on the NCDHHS Vimeo Channel.

   

    For more information and updates on COVID-19, visit covid19.ncdhhs.gov and nc.gov/covid19. Those with COVID-19 vaccine questions can call the COVID-19 Vaccine Help Center at 1-888-675-4567, or visit YourSpotYourShot.nc.gov.

    Contact:

    North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services

    Email: news@dhhs.nc.gov  •  Phone: (919) 855-4840