NASHVILLE, Tennessee (WTVF) – Nashville Mayor John Cooper has announced that Metro will move to the next phase of its COVID-19 vaccinations next week.
Cooper said during Metro’s weekly COVID briefing on Thursday that Davidson County is moving into Phase 1c from Monday for vaccinations. This includes people over 16 who are considered at high risk in terms of health complications by the virus.
Some of these risk factors include: those with asthma, hypertension, diabetes, those undergoing cancer treatment, recipients of organ transplants and other conditions listed here.
Phase 1c also includes household contacts of high-risk children under 16, pregnant women and household contacts of pregnant women.
This new phase covers 300,000 people. Metro vaccinated 65+ residents last week. Click here to schedule an appointment.
Cooper said the FDA’s recent approval of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine means that Metro can expect to receive even larger vaccines weekly as production and distribution increase. Metro will receive 13,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine next week, in addition to the 11,500 doses of Pfizer and Moderna.
“It increases and the ability of public health to get shots quickly and efficiently makes it possible to move to 1c,” Mayor Cooper said.
Watch Metro’s full COVID briefing:
MORE TENNESSEE COVID-19 COVER
See all our coronavirus coverage here
COUNTRY CASES CASES IN HOUSEHOLD
What is COVID-19 (also known as the new coronavirus?)
According to the World Health Organization, coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause diseases, ranging from colds to worse diseases. Examples include Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). A new coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. COVID-19 stands for “Coronavirus Disease 2019”, that is when this strain of coronavirus was discovered.
What are the symptoms?
The CDC says patients have confirmed that the 2019 nCoV apparently had mild to severe respiratory illness with:
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or breathing problems
Or at least two of the following symptoms:
- Fever
- Cold Fever
- Repeat shaking with chills
- Muscle aches
- Headache
- Keelseer
- New loss of taste or smell
At present, the CDC believes that symptoms may appear as soon as two days after exposure or 14 days.
Prevention
The CDC recommends ‘common sense’ measures such as:
- Wash your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds with soap and water. If water and soap are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Do not touch your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with sick people.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth to cover the face.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently affected objects and surfaces.