PORTLAND, Maine — The percentage of Maine teenagers and 12-year-olds who have had at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine has exceeded 50 percent.
Maine has been ahead of most of the country in vaccinating residents against COVID-19. The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday that about 51 percent of the state’s 12- to 19-year-old residents have had at least one dose, and about 47 percent have had a final dose.
The rollout of vaccines to teens and adolescents has been much slower nationwide. Only about 14 percent of the U.S. population that is under 18 has had a first dose of coronavirus vaccine, according to data from Mayo Clinic.
In Maine, the percentage of the total population that is under 20 and has had at least one dose is about 22 percent, Maine CDC reported. That includes people too young to receive a vaccine.
More than two-thirds of Maine’s population old enough to receive a coronavirus vaccine has received a final dose. That is one of the highest percentages in the country.
The state is continuing to promote pop-up vaccine clinics around the state. Multicultural Community and Family Support Services in Lewiston hosted one on Sunday that was also an ice cream social.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, has touted the state’s vaccination effort.
“We have been lifted up by the courage, conviction and resilience that comes from loving a place and its people,” Mills said in a statement.
While the state’s immunization rate is high, cases of the virus have nosed up recently, as they have around the country. The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Maine has risen over the past two weeks from 20.57 new cases per day on July 3 to 36.57 new cases per day on July 17. The seven-day rolling average of daily deaths in Maine has risen over the past two weeks from 0.29 deaths per day on July 3 to 2.86 deaths per day on July 17.
Maine CDC reported Monday that more than 69,000 positive cases of coronavirus have been reported in the state since the start of the pandemic. There have also been 882 deaths.
Story by Patrick Whittle, Associated Press