THURSDAY UPDATES: Boone County reports 26 new COVID-19 cases; active cases below 100

Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting 26 new COVID-19 cases.

The health department is currently reporting 97 active cases, an 11 case increase from Wednesday.

The county now has a reported total number of COVID-19 cases of 17,494.

The county has reported the total number of cases removed from isolation is 17,318, a 15 case increase from Wednesday.

Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services dashboard has reported the latest five-day average as 15.

The dashboard is reporting the positivity rate of 11.8% for the week of Feb. 19 through last Thursday.

The county continues to trend down as there have been 36 straight days of single or double-digit case increases. It is also the 27th day in a row of new cases under 50.

The health department is reporting the total number of hospitalizations in Boone County is 23.

The number of Boone County residents hospitalized is reported to be 4.

The dashboard is reporting nine COVID-19 patients in the ICU and four patients on ventilators.

The hospital status remains in 'Green' status. 'Green' status is when hospitals are operating within licensed bed capacity; accepting patient transfers from referring hospitals within standard care operating procedures.

The State of Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard is reporting that 33,153 residents have received their first dose in Boone County.

The county has the third-largest percentage of people that have received at least one dose of the vaccine with 18.4%.

Saline County has the largest with 18.8% of the population have received the first dose of the vaccine. Howard County is second with 18.7% and Cole County is fourth with 18.34%.

New COVID-19 vaccine delivery channel announced for Missouri

Gov. Mike Parson announced during a briefing Thursday that pharmacies across Missouri will begin receiving the COVID-19 vaccine through prioritized shipments from a new State Pharmacy Program.

“With vaccine supply continuing to increase and more Missourians becoming eligible, we will now begin shipping vaccines to pharmacies in all regions and communities throughout the state,” said Governor Parson. “Local pharmacies are a trusted health care resource for many Missourians, so distributing vaccines to as many pharmacies as we can will help expand accessibility by providing a vast network of capable providers in every community.”

Beginning Monday, the state's pharmacy program will receive 15-percent of Missouri's weekly vaccine allotment from the federal government.

The state has identified 29 counties in Mid-Missouri and 132 pharmacies based on ability, location, and population. These pharmacies have the ability to administer 200 initial doses of COVID-19 vaccines per week and will consistently receive this number of doses in addition to booster doses for the next three to four weeks.

MU Health Care fills open vaccination appointments

MU Health Care announced Thursday afternoon that open vaccination slots for an upcoming clinic have been filled.

The health system made a call to the public earlier in the morning to fill hundreds of appointments.

The vaccination clinic is being held at Faurot Field on Friday and Saturday. MU Health Care officials said 6,200 vaccine doses are available at the event.

Cole County to hold vaccine clinic March 19

Cole County leaders have set a date for a clinic organized to give the county's teachers and school staff coronavirus vaccine shots.

Cole County Health Department Director Kristi Campbell said educators and school staff members will be able to sign up first for the event, however, it is also open to the general public.

Officials said on a Thursday afternoon phone call that the clinic will be held March 19.

"We are forever grateful for the work our school employees have done, and we are so thankful they will have the opportunity to be among the first teachers and school employees in the State of Missouri to receive their vaccines," the county's school districts said in a combined statement.

The state will open up Phase 1B, Tier 3 of its vaccination plan on March 15. That tier, with more than 500,000 Missourians in it, includes teachers.

More than 18% of Cole County's population has received its first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, according to state numbers. About 9,300 residents have completed their vaccinations.

MU Health Care trying to fill hundreds of coronavirus vaccine slots

MU Health Care said Thursday that it is trying to fill hundreds of open appointments for coronavirus vaccine shots at a clinic that starts Friday.

The organization said in a news release that the openings are the result of fewer eligible individuals who have not been vaccinated combined with increasing supply. MU Health said this week that it has 6,200 doses available for this weekend's clinic.

The clinic will take place Friday through Sunday at Faurot Field.

Missouri's current eligibility criteria include people 65 and older and those with certain underlying health conditions.

Eligible people who want to sign up can do so online or by calling 573-771-2273.

The state reports more than 18% of Boone County's population has been vaccinated, with more than 33,000 first doses given. The county has a population of about 180,000.

15% of Missourians initiate coronavirus vaccination

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said Thursday 15% of state residents have initiated coronavirus vaccination.

The latest update on the department's coronavirus dashboard said 919,085 Missourians have initiated the vaccine process and 481,713 have completed the process.

Since vaccines became available, more than 1.4 million total doses have been administered. The dashboard said nearly 250,000 vaccine doses have been given out over the week ending on Monday.

State residents 65 and older have the most vaccinations in Missouri. Data said 42.3% of Missouri's 65-74-year-olds have been vaccinated followed by 34.3% of 75-84 and 47.8% of people 85 and older. The next closest group was 55-64 with only 17.8% of that population vaccinated.

In two weeks, residents who fall into Phase 1B Tier 3, a group that includes more than 500,000 people, will become vaccine eligible. Teachers and school staff members are some of the members being greenlighted for vaccine shots.

Health officials reported 467 new coronavirus-positive cases and two new virus-related deaths. Since the pandemic started, 479,536 COVID-19 cases and 8,150 deaths have been reported.

Missouri's seven-day COVID-19 positivity rate was reported at 4.5%.

The state's hospital association said there were 999 COVID-19 hospitalizations and 213 virus-related ICU admissions in the latest data available. Both numbers have fallen steadily since early January.