Hutchinson encourages college students to get covid-19 vaccine

In this July 20 file photo, Gov. Asa Hutchinson removes his mask before a briefing at the state Capitol in Little Rock. (The Associated Press)
In this July 20 file photo, Gov. Asa Hutchinson removes his mask before a briefing at the state Capitol in Little Rock. (The Associated Press)

Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Tuesday expressed concern about the slowing pace of covid-19 vaccinations in Arkansas, and he encouraged college students to get at least one dose before summer break.

"If you only get one vaccine [dose], whenever you go home, you get your second vaccine," Hutchinson said of college students.

"The same thing will be true for the students who will be coming home from other, out of state schools. You can even get your second vaccine [dose] here."

Hutchinson spoke as the state's count of coronavirus cases rose by 198 - the third daily increase in a row that was smaller than the one a week earlier.

The number of covid-19 patients in the state's hospitals, however, rose by 13, to 177, its highest level since March 25.

The state's death toll from the virus, as tracked by the Department of Health, rose by seven, to 5,706.

At his weekly news conference on the coronavirus, Hutchinson noted that, according to Health Department figures, 41.7% of adult Arkansans have had at least one vaccine dose.

"That’s some good news that it’s going up at that level, but I will say also that this is below the national average," Hutchinson said.

"I think part of it is just some natural resistance in the South, in a rural state, and it shows that we have some of that resistance to overcome."

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 50.7% of U.S. adults, including 43.3% of those in Arkansas, had received at one vaccine dose as of Monday.

Unlike the Health Department's, the CDC's figures include doses administered by federal entities such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, the military and the Bureau of Prisons.

Health Department Chief of Staff Stephanie Williams said at the news conference that the department will begin administering the Moderna vaccine next week at its local health units in each of the state's 75 counties.

People can make appointments for the shots by calling one of the units or department's vaccine hotline at (800) 985-6030.

Williams said the department will also be offering the vaccine at a May 15 event at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.

EARLIER:

Gov. Asa Hutchinson and state health officials will provide an update on Arkansas' covid-19 response at 1:30 p.m.

The total number of coronavirus cases reported in Arkansas remained at 333,511 Tuesday morning, according to a state website. The death toll remained at 5,699.

Statewide, 1,538,762 doses have been administered since mid-December, according to state health officials.

Check back to watch the live video.

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