Oklahoma moves to vaccine’s Phase 2

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahomans age 65 and older will begin receiving their vaccinations this week, and health officials announced Monday they plan to release a mobile phone application as early as Thursday that will allow residents to schedule an appointment to receive their vaccine.

The state has contracted with Microsoft to develop a mobile phone application that will allow people to schedule their appointment and track when they should receive their second dose of the vaccine, deputy health commissioner Keith Reed told reporters during a press conference.

Oklahoma has received nearly 175,000 doses and administered more than 50,000 first doses of the two-dose vaccine, Reed said. Oklahoma expects to begin receiving between 30,000 and 40,000 additional doses every week, said Health Commissioner Dr. Lance Frye.

“Our vaccine rollout can only go as quickly as we’re getting supplies from the federal government,” Frye said.

First responders and health care workers who provide outpatient care to COVID patients are also in Phase 2 and began receiving vaccinations last week. Adults of any age with underlying conditions and pre K-12 public school teachers also are in Phase 2, but those individuals have not started receiving their vaccines yet, Reed said.

Health officials reported 2,699 new confirmed cases on Monday and five additional deaths, bringing the total number of confirmed infections in the state to 306,771 and the death toll to 2,552. The true number of infections in Oklahoma is likely higher because many haven’t been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected and not feel sick.

Oklahoma currently ranks fourth in the U.S. in new cases per capita over the past 14 days, with 1,096.45 cases per 100,000 residents, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The data also shows Oklahoma’s seven-day rolling average of positivity rate, daily new cases and daily deaths have all increased over the past two weeks.