Today, Governor Roy Cooper visited a vaccine clinic at the Forsyth County Department of Public Health to encourage more North Carolinians get their COVID-19 vaccine.

“Thanks to these safe, effective and free vaccines, North Carolinians are safely getting back to doing the things they love,” Governor Cooper said. “But this pandemic isn’t over yet. We need everyone to get a shot, so we can turn the final corner on this virus.”

The clinic is distributing $25 Summer Cash Cards to people getting their first dose and their drivers. The health department is working with the North Carolina National Guard to administer vaccines and partnering with community organizations to make getting vaccinated as accessible as possible.

“We appreciate Governor Cooper visiting the Forsyth County Department of Public Health. We’re extremely proud of our Public Health staff and the hard work they’ve done vaccinating the county at the health department and out in the community, where they hold several vaccination events a week. They’ve worked with major local companies to vaccinate employees. They've vaccinated people at community events, baseball games, schools, churches, and at numerous local businesses and organizations,” said Dave Plyler, Chairman of the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners. “The vaccine is the best way to stop the spread of COVID-19 and prevent serious illness from the disease. I urge anyone who’s unvaccinated to take advantage of the opportunities available to get the vaccine.”

On Wednesday, Governor Cooper and North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Mandy Cohen shared updated public health guidance for K-12 schools to follow in the upcoming school year. The StrongSchoolsNC Public Health Toolkit is aligned with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and American Academy of Pediatrics guidance and goes into effect on July 30th.

As of today, more than 9.5 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in North Carolina, with 56 percent of the adult population fully vaccinated. Sixty percent of adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine, including 86 percent of people 65 and over.

North Carolinians can learn more about the state’s vaccine distribution at myspot.nc.gov (English) or Vacunate.nc.gov (Spanish). Learn more about the Your Shot at $1 Million Summer Cash Drawing at covid19.ncdhhs.gov/summervaxcash. Find a nearby vaccine provider using NCDHHS’ online tool, Find a Vaccine Location. The state’s COVID-19 vaccine hotline number is 888-675-4567.

Video footage of this event will be available for media use here.

Still photos will be available here, credit to Walt Unks of Winston-Salem Journal.

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