By Cathy Iino, First Selectwoman, Killingworth.
It’s been a year since the governor declared a public health emergency in Connecticut. Killingworth has done pretty well, all things considered. To date, we have had 302 confirmed cases of COVID—less than 5 percent of our population—and, tragically, 6 deaths. About 9 percent of the U.S. population has had confirmed cases to date, and about 7.5 percent of the Connecticut population.
As of the 8th of March, 1,967 Killingworth residents had received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine. That is over half of our population age 45 and older! Good work, Killingworth—especially given the difficulties in scheduling vaccination appointments that many of us have faced.
For those of you who have not yet signed up for vaccination, alert citizens have shared two helpful sites:
https://vaccinefinder.org, created by the CDC, allows you to find vaccine clinics near you just by typing in your zip code.
www.covidvaccinetexts.com, “built by a few folks who were tired of clicking refresh on pharmacy websites trying to get a vaccine appointment,” gives you a chart of options with a variety of information, including how to contact a particular vaccination provider.
VA Clinics. The Veteran’s Administration is now holding walk-in clinics for veterans of any age who are enrolled with the VA. Clinics are scheduled at the West Haven Annex, 200 Edison Road in Orange, today, March 12, from noon to 4:00 p.m., and March 15, 16, 18, and 19, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.
The VA will also hold a clinic on March 17, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., in Waterford (Oswegatchie Elementary School, 470 Boston Post Road). This one requires an appointment; enrolled veterans can schedule into the clinic by calling 203-932-5711, x5627, 7784, or 7754.
Veterans can enroll with the VA at https://www.va.gov/health-care/how-to-apply/.
Housebound residents. We are trying to arrange vaccinations for housebound residents. If you or someone you know is housebound and would like to get the vaccine, please call 860-663-1765, x220, and leave a phone number. We will call you to get the name and address of the person. We will notify you as soon as we have a program set up.
Unfortunately, Killingworth’s rate of infection per 100,000 people has gone back up to 31.4, which keeps us in the red zone for risk of transmission. That means we must continue to wear masks and follow social distancing guidelines. Even if you are vaccinated, wearing a mask will prevent possible spread to others and will reassure people you see in public that their exposure is limited. Masks are still required at the Transfer Station, for example. Please keep our community healthy.
Spring is on the way. Daylight Savings Time actually starts this weekend! We can hang in for another couple of months.
Stay safe and carry on.
