COVID vaccination rates in those under 50 are low in Cerro Gordo County

MASON CITY — The COVID-19 vaccination rates in Cerro Gordo County are good with the county’s older population, but those rates are lagging behind in younger age groups.

CG Public Health director Brian Hanft says 44% of the county’s residents have had at least one dose of vaccine, with 75% of those age 65 and older having been vaccinated, but those numbers drop off with younger residents.  “Those ages 16-29 years old, we’ve only gotten 17% of the people through, so we’ve got a lot of work to do. 70% have not had a single dose. When we look at the next age group 30-49, there’s 56% of that population have not had a single dose. That does concern me quite a bit. We definitely need to get some more people through the door.”

Hanft says while they continue to get phone calls asking for more information about the vaccine, a large part of the population is still on the fence on whether or not they should get it.  “I think the availability of general information related to the safety of the vaccine is critically important in order to try to get those people to sway to the side of getting the vaccine from the public health’s perspective. We’ve watched this with a front-row seat since the vaccine was first brought on board, and certainly there was speculation about its viability and its impact, and efficacy.”

For more information about vaccines and the county’s vaccine clinics, head to cghealth.com.