COVID vaccine live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on Sept. 24
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and vaccines in South Carolina. Check back for updates.
More than 2,600 new COVID cases reported
At least 677,058 people have tested positive for the coronavirus and 10,498 have died in South Carolina since March 2020, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control on Friday reported 2,602 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, up from 2,202 the day before. The state also confirmed 111 additional coronavirus-related deaths, data show.
At least 2,270 people in the state were reported hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Wednesday, including 551 patients being treated in intensive care units and 386 on ventilators.
As of Friday, 9.4% of COVID-19 tests were reported positive. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 5% or lower means there is a low level of community spread.
Just over 51% of South Carolinians eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine are fully vaccinated, and nearly 60% have received at least one dose, according to health officials.
Midlands, Beaufort County schools see drops in cases
COVID-19 cases among students and staff are on the decline in Beaufort County, according to an analysis of school district data reported by The Island Packet.
Quarantine numbers have also dipped, data show, falling to the lowest levels the Beaufort County School District has seen since students returned to class last month.
In the week of Sept. 13 to Sunday, BCSD reported 105 coronavirus cases among students and eight cases among staff members, the newspaper reported, citing district spokeswoman Candace Bruder. More than 1,400 students and 36 staff were quarantined during the same period.
Read the full analysis here.
Also in South Carolina, coronavirus cases are starting to drop in Midlands schools. While statewide case counts have dropped since early September, school officials have said testing, quarantine and other measures have contributed to the decline.
“Our quarantining practices, coupled with temporarily shifting nine schools to e-learning, reset the clocks, so to speak. That allowed our schools to slow the spread of the virus,” said Greg Little, superintendent of Lexington County School District 1. “It also appears that since we are not requiring masks, our in-school spread is reflective of and driven by the community spread much more than it was last school year.”
Also seeing drops in cases were Lexington-Richland, Kershaw County Schools and Richland 2, The State reported Friday.
Providers to offer booster shots near Myrtle Beach
Two health care providers in the Myrtle Beach area have announced plans for making COVID-19 vaccine booster shots available.
Tidelands Health is offering the shots to eligible people at three vaccination sites and medical appointments, the hospital system said Friday.
And starting next week, Conway Medical Center plans to offer boosters, The Sun News reported.
A third shot of a Pfizer vaccine is now recommended for adults over 65, as well as people who are at risk for getting seriously sick or those with jobs that could expose them to the virus. The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control in a statement on Friday supported giving boosters to those groups.
Prizes to be offered at SC vaccine clinics
Prizes will be offered this weekend to people who get COVID-19 vaccines at two clinics in South Carolina.
Riverbanks Zoo & Garden in Columbia is giving prizes to anyone who gets a COVID-19 vaccine at an upcoming event.
On Saturday, anyone who gets a Pfizer or Johnson & Johnson shot will receive a stuffed animal and a pass to the zoo, valid up to one year.
The event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and prizes will be offered while supplies last, The State reported.
Also on Saturday, a vaccine clinic on Hilton Head Island is giving anyone who gets their first dose a $25 gift card. Those patients will also be entered into a drawing for an Xbox gaming system, The Island Packet reported.
The event is set for 9 a.m. to noon at the Boys & Girls Club on Gumtree Road.
Officer threatens to call social services if parent left unmasked kids
A South Carolina school resource officer said he would contact social services if a parent left children at school without a face mask.
The 13-second video was taken at James B. Edwards Elementary School in Charleston County, a district that has defied state law in passing a mask mandate, McClatchy News reported Thursday.
Mount Pleasant police said the “entire interaction” can’t be seen in the clip. The department said it reviewed the body-worn camera video from the officer, who stepped in after school officials had already told a parent to leave.
“If a parent abandons a child in any situation, notifications can be made to DSS so arrangements can be made for the child’s safety,” officials said.
Lancaster County schools offer virtual learning amid COVID
Students in Lancaster County now have the option to learn from home, the Rock Hill Herald reported.
On Tuesday, the school district’s board of trustees voted to create a virtual option for the rest of the 2021-2022 school year after starting without one. The option is available to all K-12 students, but parents have to act fast. The enrollment deadline is this Friday, Sept. 24.
The Lancaster County School District will hire additional staff, including retired teachers, to teach online classes, district spokeswoman Michelle Craig told the Herald.
The change comes as the district, as well as others across the state, sees an uptick in coronavirus cases among students and staff members.
For more information, read the full story here.
Masks shouldn’t be a ‘political issue,’ SC teachers and nurses say
Teachers, pediatricians and school nurses across South Carolina are lending their voices to the push to repeal a controversial state provision that prevents schools from imposing mask requirements.
Several groups including the Palmetto State Teachers Association, South Carolina Association of School Nurses and South Carolina chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics gathered Tuesday to persuade state lawmakers to convene a special legislative session to lift the ban, The State reported.
“It is a concern of ours, it is a concern of our teachers, of our school administrators, of our school board members that these children are losing learning time again,” said Kathy Maness, executive director of the Palmetto State Teachers Association. “This mask issue does not need to be a political issue.”
The effort comes as the delta variant drives a surge in COVID-19 cases among school-aged children, some who are too young to be vaccinated against the virus. COVID spread has also forced hundreds of students, school faculty and staff members into quarantine.
“The General Assembly is not a super school board,” she said. “They need to leave that decision to local elected officials who know what’s best for their community so that our students can stay in the classroom, so they can continue to learn and our teachers can teach.”
Most Lexington parents in favor of mask rules, survey says
More than two-thirds of parents in the Lexington 1 school district said they would support a mask mandate to help slow the spread of COVID-19 in schools, The State reported, citing the results of a district-wide survey.
The questionnaire, which went out last week, asked parents and staff members their feelings on requiring face masks in school during times of “high community spread.”
“For months, we have heard from a small and vocal group of parents and staff on both sides of the mask debate,” school board chair Anne Marie Green wrote in an email to parents this week. “We wanted to know how our entire community truly felt about masking.”
A controversial provision passed by the state Legislature earlier this year bars local districts from imposing mask rules on students, despite surging COVID cases. Gov. Henry McMaster has also voiced opposition to requiring masks in schools, saying they impede students’ learning.
The Lexington 1 school board is scheduled to vote on the proposal Tuesday.
Read the full story here.
Myrtle Beach hospital ‘stands ready’ to vaccinate younger kids
After Pfizer-BioNTech’s announcement that its COVID-19 vaccine is effective in children ages 5-11, some Myrtle Beach area hospitals are already preparing for the roll out, according to The Sun News.
A spokesperson for Conway Medical Center said the hospital “stands ready” to inoculate younger children as soon as it gets the go ahead. Pfizer must still go through the emergency use authorization process via the U.S. Food and Drug Administration before vaccine providers can begin administering the shots.
Officials at Grand Strand Medical Center are also awaiting additional guidance, while McLeod Health is holding off on moving forward with a plan until the shot is approved for emergency use.
Rock Hill pharmacy awarded to aiding in state vaccination effort
A family-owned pharmacy in Rock Hill that helped administer more than 16,000 COVID-19 vaccines received a special shoutout from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, the Rock Hill Herald reported.
The agency recognized Good Pharmacy as a “community hero” for its effort to get residents vaccinated as coronavirus cases surge across the state. It’s the second Rock Hill-area pharmacy to be cheered by DHEC for aiding in the state’s vaccine push.
The pharmacy began giving the two-shot Moderna vaccine back in January.
“Some of our long-term customers actually volunteered to come in and help us with some of the paperwork,” Alton Hyatt, part owner of the pharmacy, told the Rock Hill Herald. “My sister and I could not have done this without the staff and the volunteers. We are committed to getting everyone vaccinated.”
This story was originally published September 24, 2021 at 7:21 AM.
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