Manatee County was contacting 10,200 people March 12 to schedule COVID-19 vaccination appointments at Tom Bennett Park and the Public Safety Center for March 15-19, after press time for The Islander.
Monday, March 15, after press time for The Islander, was to be the first day of expanded vaccine eligibility to seniors ages 60 and older and anyone deemed by a physician to be “extremely vulnerable” to COVID-19.
More than 82,992 county residents had received at least a first dose of the vaccine as of March 12.
Coronavirus stats
The state has been documenting coronavirus statistics since March 2020, when the first COVID-19 case in the state was reported and the World Health Organization had declared a pandemic.
In Florida there have been:
- 1,967,865 positive cases as of March 12.
- 32,145 deaths as of March 12.
The latest numbers for Manatee County:
- 33,076 positive cases as of March 12, which is an increase of 633 from the week prior.
- 1,436 hospitalizations as of March 12, an increase of 58 from a week prior.
- 624 deaths as of March 12, an increase of 15 from a week prior.
On the island, there have been:
- 63 cases in Anna Maria as of March 12. This is an increase of 1 from the week prior.
- 90 cases in Bradenton Beach as of March 12 — an increase of 2 from the week prior.
- 193 cases in Holmes Beach as of March 12 — an increase of 5 from the week prior.
Coronavirus testing
Free testing for the novel coronavirus is available at the Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd., Palmetto. Hours are 8 a.m.-4 p.m. — or until capacity is reached.
Free testing for the coronavirus is available at the state drive-thru site at 5400 Bradenton Road, Sarasota. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. — or until capacity is reached.
COVID-19 vaccinations
To register in Manatee County’s vaccination enrollment process, go online to vax.mymanatee.org.
Also, COVID-19 vaccinations are available at select CVS, Publix, Walgreens, Walmart and Winn-Dixie locations in the county.
Registration for vaccinations is open to full- or part-time Florida residents aged 60 and older by appointment only, as supply is available.
Frontline health care workers and educators are receiving doses through a different pool.
Coronavirus precautions
Anna Maria and Holmes Beach have mandates that face masks be worn inside public accommodations, with some exceptions for age, health conditions and to consume food and beverages.
Bradenton Beach does not have a mandate for face masks.
Also, Manatee County does not have a mandate.
However, a federal mandate requires face masks to be worn on public transportation including the MCAT trolleys and buses operating on Anna Maria Island, as well as the Bradenton Beach tram service and ridership services such as Uber and the Monkey Bus.
— Ryan Paice