CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As of Sunday, just under half of the United States has gotten at least one COVID-19 shot, and there are still plenty of efforts underway to encourage more people to get the shot.
Increasing vaccination numbers come as coronavirus cases dropped to the lowest levels across the country since June 2020, below 30,000 on Friday. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says this bears good news in the fight against the virus.
"These data are telling us a story," she said. "As more and more people roll up their sleeves and get vaccinated, the number of cases and level of community risk is decreasing."
Beyond the half of the country partially vaccinated, just under 40% are fully vaccinated. President Joe Biden has set a goal: to get shots into the arms of 70% of Americans. To get to that goal requires some unique partnerships; Biden's administration is teaming up with some dating apps like Tinder, Hinge, Match, and Bumble to boost users' profiles that indicate they are vaccinated to make them more visible to possible matches. The apps themselves will also provide resources to help users get vaccinated.
Is this a match for all users? For Anthony Metrulas, it is.
“People are looking for safety and people want to be comfortable and I think it’s a really smart idea,” he said.
However, Lois Taukeiaho is swiping left on the idea.
“I don’t think you should completely pass me up if I am not vaccinated, you know," she said.
Getting a COVID-19 shot may not be liked by everyone looking for a shot at love, but it could be a surefire way to drop masks in more places. Carowinds, which just recently reopened, is allowing guests who are fully vaccinated to stow away their masks, while Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, Hershey Park, Sea World, and Dollywood will let fully vaccinated visitors the ability to drop masks while enjoying outdoor areas of their parks. Health experts say if you're itching to get to those vacation hotspots, this should be incentive enough.
"If your whole family is fully vaccinated, now is the time that you can start to move back toward normal," said Dr. Megan Ranney, an emergency physician and associate professor at Brown University.
If you're not looking to travel far, but still want to drop the masks while out and about, local venues are helping make getting a COVID-19 shot even more attractive. Truist Field says anyone who pops over this Tuesday through Friday and gets a COVID-19 shot will get a free ticket to the ACC baseball championship this year, which they're hosting at full capacity.
The approach the dating apps, theme parks, and Truist Field are taking share a common thread: they're all targeted approaches aimed at getting different slices of the population vaccinated. Gibbie Harris, the health director for Mecklenburg County, says these kinds of strategies are key because they meet people where they are at.
"We will just have to continue to make sure that we are being as accessible as possible,” she said.
