Addition of 5-11 affects dashboard percentage for ‘eligible people vaccinated’

With the welcome addition of 5- to 11-year-olds to those eligible to receive the safe, free, and highly effective COVID-19 vaccination, starting today you’ll see a short-term decrease in the “Percent of eligible people vaccinated” metric on our Vaccine Administration dashboard.

Previously, this number was calculated by dividing the number of people who have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine by the total Arizona population 12 years and older. Now that 5- to 11-year-olds are eligible for vaccination with a new, lower-dose Pfizer vaccine, about 645,000 more Arizonans are now included in the denominator.

About 70% of Arizonans 12 and older have received at least one dose of vaccine. Adding 5- to 11-year-olds are added into the denominator change percentage of those eligible who’ve received at least one dose to about 64%. As the 5-11 vaccine rollout gets underway, we expect to see the percent of people vaccinated increase.

The good news behind this percentage change is we’re adding many more Arizonans to the population eligible for COVID-19 vaccination. As parents make the wise decision to protect their children through vaccination, Arizona will move even closer to the community immunity needed to put COVID-19 in its place.

Everyone can find a convenient location offering COVID-19 vaccination at azhealth.gov/FindVaccine. You can screen to show just pediatric vaccinators and those offering specific types of vaccines.

By Jessica Rigler|2021-11-11T09:46:43-07:00November 10th, 2021|Preparedness|Comments Off

About the Author: Jessica Rigler

Jessica Rigler, an Arizona native, began her public health career more than 15 years ago, serving in varied roles with local, state, federal, and international public health agencies. Jessica has been with the Arizona Department of Health Services for over 12 years, supporting evaluation activities with the state immunization program, serving as the state’s first Healthcare Associated Infections Coordinator, and leading the Bureau of Epidemiology and Disease Control. She is currently an Assistant Director overseeing the Division of Public Health Preparedness at ADHS, which spans the areas of Epidemiology and Disease Control, Emergency Medical Services, Public Health Statistics, Public Health Emergency Preparedness and the Arizona State Public Health Laboratory. In recent years, Jessica has worked with the ADHS team to lead critical public health responses including opioids and COVID-19. Jessica holds Bachelor’s degrees in biochemistry and human development from the University of California, San Diego, and a Master’s degree in public health from Emory University. She is a Certified Health Education Specialist and certified in infection control.