Hello Johns Creek,
Because of these bleak numbers, I implore you to please continue to do everything we can to decrease the chances of getting or spreading COVID-19 or the flu. Adhering to guidelines and information from trusted sources is important as our community works to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
As we are also seeing advances in treatments lessen the impact and severity of the virus in some patients, there is some hope on the horizon about COVID-19 vaccines. The CDC recently announced the following:
The U.S. vaccine safety system ensures that all vaccines are as safe as possible. On December 11, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an Emergency Use Authorization for use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in people aged 16 years and older for the prevention of COVID-19. Because the supply of COVID-19 vaccine in the United States will be limited at first, CDC recommends that initial supplies of COVID-19 vaccine be allocated to healthcare personnel and long-term care facility residents. The recommendations were made with the following goals in mind: Decrease death and serious disease as much as possible; Preserve functioning of society; and Reduce the extra burden COVID-19 is having on people already facing disparities.
What You Need to Know about the U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Program
You need 2 doses of the currently available COVID-19 vaccine. A second shot 3 weeks after your first shot is needed to get the most protection the vaccine has to offer. Because the current supply of COVID-19 vaccine in the United States is limited, CDC recommends that initial supplies of COVID-19 vaccine be offered to healthcare personnel and long-term care facility residents. The goal is for everyone to be able to easily get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as large enough quantities are available. Once vaccine is widely available, the plan is to have several thousand vaccination providers offering COVID-19 vaccines in doctors’ offices, retail pharmacies, hospitals, and federally qualified health centers. Vaccine doses purchased with U.S. taxpayer dollars will be given to the American people at no cost.
Yes, this is positive news, but please know that this will take some time. This news should not take away from the fact that cases continue to increase rapidly across the United States.
The dramatic trajectory of new diagnoses has been continuing for almost two months straight. I again stress the importance of wearing a mask, limiting your exposure to enclosed indoor areas, and practicing social distancing. Each and every member of our city and community must do what we can to address the spread of this infection.
In the past two weeks (reporting weeks of 11/21 to 12/4) there were more than 4,042 new cases of COVID-19 in Fulton County.
In that same period, there were 361 new cases in the City of Johns Creek, which represents a 63.3 % increase in new diagnoses.
We’ve previously reported that case counts in Johns Creek are among the lower portion when compared to the other major cities in North Fulton County. But that is no longer the case. The latest report shows new diagnoses in Johns Creek over the past 14-day reporting period trail only those of Atlanta (1,601) Sandy Springs (488). Being rated third in the entire county in new cases does not indicate that we are doing the proper things to decrease the spread of the virus.