By GRANT SCHULTE-Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Nebraska officials may start using mobile sites to help expand the number of places where residents can get coronavirus vaccines as the number of available doses increases, Gov. Pete Ricketts said Monday.
His comments came as the number of new vaccinations administered continues to trend upward, with dips on weekends.
"Certainly, that may be one thing we do," Ricketts said at a coronavirus news conference.
Health officials vaccinated a new one-day high of 20,949 people on Thursday. Statewide, 12% of Nebraska residents who are at least 16 years old have been fully vaccinated, according to the state's online tracking portal.
Nebraska hospitals that are working through the state's vaccination program have received 502,470 doses so far. The state has also received 109,735 through the federal government's retail pharmacy program, which distributes vaccines to local pharmacies.
Ricketts said the state has seen success with mass vaccination sites, such as the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department's location at Pinnacle Bank Arena in downtown Lincoln.
Nebraska officials are still giving top priority for vaccinations to residents who are at least 65 years old, a group that accounts for a large majority of the state's coronavirus deaths.
In the next vaccination phase, which could begin later this month, state officials have ordered public health departments to give 90% of their doses to residents between 50 and 59. The remaining 10% of doses will go to people with underlying health conditions, as chosen by doctors and public health officials within each local health district.
Officials with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services have said they expect to see an increase in vaccinations as drugmakers Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson continue to ramp up production of federally approved vaccines.
Ricketts said state officials are sharing the lists of people who are eligible and registered to get vaccinated with local health districts, so they know who can get a dose.
Nebraska had 142 people hospitalized with the coronavirus as of Monday morning, down from the record high of nearly 1,000 in mid-November, according to the state's tracking portal. The state has confirmed 203,027 virus cases and 2,113 deaths since the pandemic began.