>> Good mandy afternoon, I'm cohen and the secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

And today, I'm joined by secretary Eric Boyette of the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

David Payne and Brian Tipton or American sign language interpreters Jackie and jasmine metivier Spanish interpreters, let's dive into this briefing as of this morning.

There were 7,187 new covid cases reported today.

3,666 people are currently hospitalized with covid right now across North Carolina.

And sadly there have been 8,339 deaths since the beginning of this pandemic.

As of today, North Carolina has administered 569,000 334 total doses of COVID-19 vaccines over a half a million vaccines which is the 10th most in the United States.

Hospitals local health departments and other vaccine providers have rapidly accelerated the rate of getting people vaccinated.

Over the past 2 weeks nearly 3 times the number of vaccines were given then in the prior 2 weeks.

Our goal for vaccine providers is to use every first dose they have before the next shipment arrives each and every week.

We will always have supply of second doses on hand to ensure everyone gets both shots.

But those first doses need to get off the shelf and given to people each and every week.

We are up for the task across the state government agencies businesses and health care providers are coming together and partnering in new ways to make it happen.

Everyone is working 14 vaccine with a shared goal of getting North Carolinians vaccinated as quickly as possible.

The state is aiding these local efforts by offering support with data entry or event planning coordination across community pick players, pairing volunteer workforce such as vaccinators and registration assistance.

Help answering phones and materials to inform people about vaccines.

I want to thank our partners in the North Carolina emergency management and North Carolina National Guard who are helping us respond to staffing needs with rapid response teams.

We also continue to scale up large scale vaccination sites across the state.

Governor governor Cooper and I had the opportunity to visit one in Orange County earlier this week.

You could see the joy and relief on people's faces when they received the vaccine.

Our sister agencies are also joining team vaccine.

Governor Cooper is committed to deploying every resource to make sure people have access and are not held back by barriers like lack of transportation.

That's why the North Carolina department of Transportation is launching a program to pay for rides for people receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.

Local transit agencies across the state are receiving 2 and a half million dollars in Corona relief funding to make this happen.

Lack of transportation shouldn't be the reason someone doesn't get their shot.

Secretary boy yet is here with me today to answer questions about this important partnership.

From the beginning our plan has focused on delivering vaccine to all 100 counties.

Now all other states have adopted strategies to focus on high population areas and places with the largest number of health care providers.

We sought to build capacity.

Everywhere to ensure a more equitable access to the vaccine throughout the state.

Geography is only one part of the equation though all vaccine providers are responsible for ensuring that historically marginalized communities have equitable access to vaccines.

That starts with meeting people where they are with event locations and partnering with health care providers who serve those historically marginalized communities.

We're starting to direction once a vaccine to safety net providers such as are federally qualified health centers and rural health centers, but again we're always constrained by the limited supply of vaccine coming into the state.

Because the supply of vaccine is limited we have to prioritize who can receive the vaccine first.

We're starting by vaccinating people who are at the highest risk of being hospitalized or dying from covid and those at highest risk of exposure.

Health care workers and anyone 65 and older can now get vaccinated.

The limited supply of vaccine means that many folks will have to wait before a vaccine is available for them.

Well vaccines will be the best way to stop this pandemic it will still be several months until most people will have a chance to get vaccinated so we can not take our eye off the ball when it comes to prevention and slowing the spread of COVID-19.

Today's COVID-19 County alert system shows that 99% of North Carolina counties are now read or orange.

As of today, 86 counties are red with critical community spread 13 are aren't with substantial community spread.

My secretarial directive remains in place please stay home and only leave your home for essential activities like work school or to meet your health care needs.

If you must leave home or be with people who you don't know where masks all the time, stay at least 6 feet apart and wash your hands often.

These things are making an impact.

While our County report paints a continued dangerous picture.

We are seeing some progress in our key metrics now they remain much higher than we want to see but they are stabilizing at them or look at the moment, your hard work is paying off.

The cases reported each day is done.

Is it down a bit from January 9th at over a 1011 1000 cases.

The percent of tests that are positive is still too high at over 11% percent.

But it's down from its peak earlier this month at over 17%.

Keep doing those 3 W's and staying home so we can slow this virus down.

Well we get everyone a spot to get their shot.

Okay with that I will open for your questions thank you.

>> My first question today is from the recess with a view in the EU Charlotte.

>> I thank you for taking my question.

I actually have a two-parter here.

I wanted to see if you have any thoughts here with a new presidential administration and we've kind of gotten an idea of what some of President Biden plan will be to make sure that vaccines are rolled out quicker and some other things as well but I wanted to see what your thoughts are on some of these new plans.

And my second question would be if you could just reflect on it being one year in covid was confirmed here in the U.S. and just you know how far we've come but how far we still have to go.

>> Vanessa thanks for those questions first all reflect on yesterday's administer executive actions taken by the Biden administration.

One I want to commend the mask mandate on I know that that is limited to federal property, but it very much that hand in hand to what we've been doing here in North Carolina for more than half a year.

I think masks are the number one thing we need to continue to do to slow the spread of this virus.

We know how this virus spreads we know that masks work and I I applaud the federal leadership.

I think that consistent message about mask is going to be really really critical.

I also appreciate the broad strokes of where the vaccine planning is going I think the governor and I have had an opportunity already to share our feedback and concerns along with other governors in the Southeast about how the federal government can help us as we continue this vaccine rollout some of the things include just better communication and coordination so we know what allocations are coming to us.

I've already shared feedback.

The fact that the CDC data for North Carolina does not reflect what the data we're seeing here in the state.

You see our own vaccine.

Dashboard shows over half a million vaccinations CDC does not reflect that so we just need better coordination and communication of this the same information so that we can plan going forward so I think all positive steps in the right direction we look forward to additional federal leadership.

As we go forward and I know we're very much looking forward to an additional package to assist our state in.

Response and recovery from from covid eyes as they worked that through.

And as I reflect on one year of being involved in responding to this crisis, it's been it's been a hard year.

On every single person and family and community here in North Carolina.

It's been particularly challenging of course for our team that's been in a state of emergency for nearly a year at this point.

And so it you know we recognize the hard work that has gone on over this year.

But it's not letting up now and so we want to make sure that we are getting vaccines to folks as quickly as possible.

We'll continue to work through that effort until everyone who wants a vaccine can have it but I encourage caution everyone that those vaccine supplies are very limited so it's going to take a number of months per phone before.

Vaccines are widely available to everyone.

Thanks for that Vanessa.

>> The next question is from Taylor young with wls-tv in Nashville.

>> I have to tailor from WLS I'm not going to piggyback off of the president Biden his goal now and they keep signing an executive order to expand testing and just thinking with local health Department today staffing seems to be a major issue.

Paying for firefighters and law enforcement to kind of work these clinics, I'm hoping that is addressed by the federal government for the Biden administration or is that something that would be handled at the state.

>> Thanks for that question.

I think our people resources have always been our most precious commodity through this entire response.

Whether that was to be able to surge or staffing in our hospitals and respond to covid or now as we are trying to make sure we have the staffing capacity to get vaccines out.

So that continues to be a challenge I I heard a couple of very good positive movements foward from the federal government one.

They're committing more dollars and personnel to helping states and we certainly welcome coordinating with them they are moving forward with allowing for a higher reimbursement rate for the work that we are doing the people resources that we are using whether that using additional FEMA resources we applaud that in terms of making sure they're supporting that the staffing work that we we are doing, but I think it has to be a partnership because we need people and and and the dollars but then we have to pare it to what's happening on the ground and making sure that it's coordinated with our operations on the ground and that it is in particularly placed in communities that are underserved to make sure that we're getting access points to everyone as we go forward here.

So staffing is continued to be an issue but I want to thank emergency management for helping us make sure that we can deploy staffing resources to our counties we've had quite a number of requests and we've been able to act on all of those request and we're getting more and more folks eat out too.

Or our local health departments and other partners on and we've I was just on with our local health Department directors all this morning and encourage them yet again to raise their hand if they need anything from the state will coordinate with emergency management to continue to support folks as we go forward.

Thank you.

>> The next question is from Mercer with the North state journal.

>> Hey good afternoon.

Doctor Cohen 2 questions one on testing and one on the vaccine.

The World Health Organization recently well it's the bulletin indicating that the PCR test can produce the higher number of false positives.

And there are other you had mentioned apartments and places that can have they use.

Days according to the manufacturer just wondering if that will change and then secondly the per capita a vaccine right for North Carolina remains around the bottom 5th states nationwide.

And I'm just wondering if the department have a tally.

How many doses of vaccine may have been thrown out it started arriving in the state, you know that's something we've seen and other states.

I just want to give that something where the department have a tally of how many had before on the way for any particular race.

Thank you.

>> Great thanks Matt for some me address that testing question and W H O they and what my understanding is they release additional guidance to say follow the manufacturer's guidance on your PCR tests and frankly that's what our folks have been doing on all along so I don't think that guidance changes any of the practice that we are doing we are already following our manufacture guidance to to understand what is a positive and what is not so I don't think the additional WH clarification change anything for the testing parameters that we're doing here when our when our lab the lab say something is positive.

They are following those manufacturer specifications that it truly is a positive.

Now on the vaccine per capita this is where I was sharing that you know our data in our state doesn't on our state dashboard of what we're collecting currently does not match what is on the CDC website.

There is actually about a 150,000 dose administered difference between the 2 of them so I caution everyone from looking at the various Web sites and where their polling data and when they're pulling it from and when was it updated, we're moving so quickly which I'm so grateful to for our vaccine providers but we're moving so quickly that many of the rankings and charts or are out of date.

We've actually already flagged for the CDC to understand what the data lag and data discrepancy is between what we're seeing here in North Carolina and the data we do submit to them every night to make sure that we can line that up a bit better.

Again we've seen more than half a million vaccines given more than a 133% increase.

In the speed of giving those vaccinations we want to continue to improve as we go obviously, but our goal is to make sure we're using up all the vaccine that is coming to our state before the next shipment comes.

So that we can be demonstrating to the federal government that we we are using our vaccine.

Effectively and efficiently here and in North Carolina.

Thanks.

>> In a follow-up from that Mercer.

Yes understand about the re and I'll ask again real quick do we know how many does the back pain and the state have been thrown out on that is something you know other space kind of report different times and then also we have an interview with us senator Phil Berger and you participated in every site airing that the General Assembly, I'm just warning what kind of legislative ask he may be making a bit of the department will be making with the long session starting this month.

>> Sure policies mat for not getting to the the the how many doses are wasted I want to start with with our guidance to our vaccine providers is don't waste any doses.

We're saying that at the if you are at the end of a of a day and you have to 3 doses left over but you're you're at of folks who are fit that priority category.

Our recommendation is keep a wait list to keep a wait list where you can call someone last minute to come in that it that does fit those priority categories he don't ever have to waste it.

But our guidance is also if you even can find someone on that priority list find the closest arma who wants to get vaccinated and get that in because we as a state don't want to waste any vaccine.

We are seeing very small numbers of vaccine waste recorded in our see the system.

But it but it's very few like in 10's of of doses but even that for me is is too much we don't want to be wasting here.

You know there are always issues as as you know these vaccines are are challenging they need to be diluted and then put into syringes so none of this is perfect.

But we are really encouraging folks on best practices related to getting as many doses they can out of each and every vile and then not wasting any at the end of the end of the day if it's out of the freezer use it use it all and make sure you're you're you're setting up your operations to be able to do that with wait lists and others who can come in quickly and if if that is needed.

On your other question about our letter legislative agenda certainly good we're going to want to work together to make sure we have the funding.

Available that was allocated by the federal government it does need to run through the General Assembly before it can get to us and out into the community.

So that's our first step is to make sure that that the money that the federal government has allocated to vaccines that is on its way to to to us can can get to us quickly and we can allocated out to the work that is frankly already under way we are.

Already expanding resources as if that's already here in our state and so we need to make sure we get those resources out for a vaccine and but remember we also have ongoing testing needs and other needs related to our covid response so that will be our first priority as we work with the General Assembly, thank you.

>> The next question is from will Michael with Wu in Syria.

>> Doctor Cohen will Michaels said W UNC I want to go back to the negative orders.

The president Biden put out it's like in.

I'm specifically looking at the order to sort of mobilized Seaman to set up their own vaccination centers as well as setting up the health and health equity task force to more evenly distributes need vaccinations to people of color in underserved communities.

Do you anticipate that the HHS would change its distribution plan based on those orders in particular.

>> Well thanks for that will I think we need to understand additional details of what that means from the then incoming Biden administration.

While say we welcome the assistance from FEMA on setting up additional vaccine site assuming that that also comes with a vaccine.

I think we're all running into the place where we have limited vaccine we've done we have now really ramped up our capability here to distribute and get folks vaccinated so when I hear will help you set up more vaccine sites will will welcome that I hope it also comes with offer of more vaccine with that so I think those are the kind of details that we need to understand as we go forward, and as far as equity that is clearly a priority for us as how we are are thinking about it I mentioned in my opening remarks I think there are some best practices both in allocation.

But in operations as well.

You know for us as a state we prioritize having access points in all 100 counties to make sure all communities had an access point across North Carolina that was a choice we made early on I think that was the right choice as we work to mature and improve our operations in every part of our state.

As we think about equity going forward, I'd love to work with the Biden administration on the kinds of strategies that they're thinking about I think we're learning a lot of about best practices from our partners on the ground and look forward to working with them to understand how how they're thinking about helping elevate some of those best practices in 2.

Vaccine allocations.

>> Follow up from Michael.

>> Thank you doctor Cohen and for secretary boy to if I could I want to ask about details of this program to pay for Ryan to get a vaccine.

Can you just explain what the 2.5 million dollars will pay for in particular is it.

I mean how many right particular for instance, the cover.

>> Sure thank you we'll say if you look we did an average of our calls per transit rail and it's about $22 per trip for with this and if you look there before trips honestly there and back twice for a shot.

So looks about 30 individuals that will be able to cover with this money.

She 30,000.

Thank you.

>> Next question is from Travis Fain wral's you.

>> Yeah, I think the question I'm proud to stand in the allocation seem to hospitals but person County Health Department.

It's still an awful lot going to the hospital more than it did you might understand that you are in a county with a pretty robust hospital system you do not necessarily have to reach out to your local health Department, your hospital system may be offered shot people beyond their own staff.

>> Travis thanks for that question on allocations and what I should say that while vaccine may get allocated to one provider there is a lot of partnership going on at the local level and so we've actually seen it a lot of transfers of vaccine.

Between partners who are able to vaccinate so if a hospital has gotten more vaccine than think they're able to get out by this Monday.

Then we are very much working with them to say let's transfer that vaccine whether it's to the local health Department to your federally qualified Health center or another vaccine, ready partner in your community.

Just yesterday, it's one day only we had 40,000 transfer is a vaccine on the loan from one provider to another so the allocation is one mechanism for us to get the vaccine out but then it's really becoming a very nice partnership in our local areas where we see the hospitals and local health departments and other providers work together to get that vaccine outright we all share that same sense of urgency to get vaccine out to our communities as quickly as possible.

And so I'm really appreciative of those who are willing to transfer and partner to make sure that this vaccine is getting out for a person in the community saying where do I go how do I think about where I can get vaccine.

I would take start with your local health Department and your local hospitals to understand are they taking appointments are they creating weight less.

How can you access.

Access those.

And again you don't have to be confined to your County.

Counties are can and should and must be serving all jurisdictions by the fact that we take in this federal asset the vaccines are paid for by the federal government they're not supposed to be limited to that one location Irwin County they they but but they do sign an agreement with us to make sure that they are serving.

Folks beyond their their their County borders as well.

>> We have a follow-up from from the same.

Just be sure not fire-breathing the stretch right now with us yet.

Hospitals are continuing to get the vaccine in significant greater number the Health Department.

And I'm but that is not because we're continuing to have that most staff to be specially it because of the the masks.

Facilities that they're going to be standing up.

>> So I think it depends on the situation.

Let me speak to the one for example this week that the governor and I visited it was one run by UNC health, but it wasn't at the hospital, I was at the Friday center it what it is open to the community.

So there are a number of those events novant health atrium health Cone vide and I'm missing people and they're going to be sad that I left them out, but all of them are doing large through put.

Events like that where they're partnering with their communities.

I got a text this morning of just one mobile.

A site that is that.

A parking lot in an african-american Church in the Charlotte area so those are the kinds of things that are happening now yes, it is the allocated to the hospital but again they partner then with some of their local entities for us we wanted to make sure we were getting vaccines to those who could commit to us that they can get vaccine out quickly.

Sometimes that was a local health Department sometimes that was a hospital.

We're just working with the partners who are raising their hand and saying I can go fast.

I know has to do this with equity and those are the partners who we are or working with.

>> And the question is from Daniel Pierce FOX 8 news in high.

>> Yet we're hearing that hospitals and health departments are running low on vaccine supplies are lower than they had anticipated right now and we're having some counties tell us that they are expected to not get any vaccines next week so my question is.

Is the state running low on vaccine is behind schedule and what should people that have signed up for vaccines in the next couple of weeks.

Expect.

>> You know great question.

That is our goal to run out of vaccines every week before the next shipment comes and that's what we have directed our local health departments and hospitals and so yes we are running out of vaccines in all places now I'm not surprised that they don't know what they're getting next week it's because they haven't gotten their allocation.

Yet we are on a week over week schedule now we're trying to forecast out for our local health departments in hospital, so they know how to plan we've said you should assume about what you're getting now is what you're going to get in the future assuming that you are able to continued to get out that vaccine in a timely manner so we are asking our partners to reclaim put run out of first dose vaccines I want to clarify that run out of first those vaccines before their next shipment comes shipments come generally on Wednesdays and it is the Friday before so tomorrow is is the first time will they will know what their allocation is but that shipment won't come until next Wednesday.

So I think it when you were as we sit here on a Thursday, it is right that a local health Department doesn't know exactly what they're shipping that they're going to receive next Wednesday is but we have been trying to forecast out for folks to have have some understanding so that they can plan that could take appointments.

But yes, the goal is to run out of vaccine by Monday or Tuesday.

So by that time shipping comes on Wednesday.

They're starting with that new allocation of first doses that comes to them.

I think you're going to hear this more and more we've worked through getting out the vaccines that we have on the shelf and I think you're going to hear more and more we need more.

And I think that has been our consistent message is we have limited supply and it's going to take some time for us to get vaccine to everyone who wants it.

So we're going to keep working as hard as we can to get the vaccines out that we get from the federal government, but ultimately the overall supply still is limited.

Remember we get about a 120,000 first doses week over week so that is the number that we are aiming for as a state every week to do those a 120,000 vaccines as first doses week over week.

>> All up from Daniel Pierce FOX it.

>> So another even here the Tri we've had a couple clinics for vaccines and had to be canceled because they've they've won out and it's probably getting frustrating for some people that continue to just sign up to get these appointments just that here it's been canceled so I guess what is your message to them about kind of their anticipation the anxiousness and even our frustration about trying to get a vaccine and trying to get through this.

>> Yet Daniel at look I understand with the limited supply of vaccine that that that this is going to be a challenge for all of us when we don't have as much as we would like first I would say when folks report to us that they are running out and they have something that is scheduled already and have appointments we work very hard to see if we can figure out a transfer meaning that there's vaccine somewhere else in the state that we might be able to get them I that happened 2 or 3 times just yesterday that I happened to hear anecdotal stories of so we're trying very hard to make sure that we're moving the vaccine to places where folks have appointments, but it's not going to be perfect.

We are just figuring out what is our operational tempo how much vaccine can we get out each and every week.

So that we know how to best schedule appointments that's why we're asking folks to move to a cycle where they're keeping wait lists as opposed to having to cancel appointments that way they can always add that's great news if someone comes off that wait list there always super happy but but as opposed to having to cancel appointments so I think that's the mechanism we're trying to do to manage this slight bit of of uncertainty as we move week to week, I'm hoping is as we get more information from the new Biden team and more certainty about what is coming up hopefully we can forecast out even further.

For everyone as we go into this and it will become a bit more smooth.

>> Look at our final question today from Christine Murphy this organs, the news Herald.

>> A doctor Cohen.

Thank you for taking my question.

I'm really curious.

One of the things that we're seeing here is that people are just frustrated with trying to get through to get even talk to someone about a vaccine.

We're seeing 70 different practices on how County's local health departments and back in this triggers a hospital or funding people up to get that thing is there some kind of best practice in the state has given to local health departments, hospitals, other back in this writer's on help to have people calling in or going on and on for the next thing.

>> Christie thanks for that that the short answer is yes, we have given folks and best practices we're also offering help and support for our local entities can we help them with reinforcing their phone lines just answering the phone.

Whatever support we can can help with.

Now we did make a decision as a state to not centralized appointments.

We did not want to add another layer of bureaucracy between the state the vaccine provider and they ultimately the person getting the vaccine.

But we do know that means different systems and different locations have different ways of getting someone into an appointment or on to a late last.

We do have our Web site that has all of our vaccine sites.

You can find it at your spot, your shot that and C .gov.

That is where we try to keep an updated list of our vaccine providers than they're either main phone number or the way that you can contact them online.

Again I think as we're learning here folks are getting better at knowing how to schedule creating wait lists and so we hope to be able to continue to improve as we go, but I think as Daniels question really pointed out we are in a point where that supplies are truly limited and everyone's going to have to have some patience here as we work to get more vaccine into the state over a period of time so we'll continue to keep you updated on the latest numbers as we go.

I don't hear a follow-up so I assume we closed out for today.

I want to remind everyone to know we focus exclusively on almost exclusively on vaccine for the questions.

But remember there is still a lot of viral spread in North Carolina and there's not enough vaccine to go around so we really have to focus still on doing those tried and true things that we know work wearing a mask all the time, waiting 6 feet apart and washing your hands remember that the secretarial directive is still in place please if you can stay home and protect yourself your family, your community is only go out for essential for reasons please don't have people over your home indoors.

Please don't go to their home indoors.

Take care of yourself and stay well.

Thank you so much.