Gov. Tate Reeves announced on Thursday that eligibility for a COVID-19 vaccine is being expanded to include all Mississippians ages 50 years or older. There are currently over 11,000 open first-dose appointments available on the MSDH website.

The announcement comes one day after Reeves lifted all state-imposed mask mandates and COVID-19 related restrictions on businesses. First responders and employees of K-12 schools, preschools and daycares became eligible for vaccination on Monday. People ages 16 to 49 years old are also eligible if they have a a qualifying chronic health condition that puts them at higher risk from COVID-19.

MAP: Where to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Mississippi

The Mississippi State Department of Health reported on Monday that 407,647 people in Mississippi — about 14% of the state’s population — have received at least their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. About 219,000 people have received both doses since the state began distributing vaccines in December.

January saw the most coronavirus-related deaths in a single month in Mississippi, with 1,240 confirmed. The state also set new single day records for new cases: 3,255 cases on Jan. 7, and 98 deaths on Jan. 12.

Additionally, the number of COVID-19 cases, COVID-related hospital admissions and clinic visits for COVID-19 like illnesses in Mississippi have been trending sharply downward in 2021.

MSDH reported 479 new COVID-19 cases and 21 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday. This brings Mississippi to a total of 296,154 coronavirus cases and 6,764 deaths since the pandemic began in March 2020.

READ MORE: Frequently asked questions about COVID vaccines in Mississippi

X

Republish this article

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Unless otherwise noted, you can republish most of Mississippi Today’s stories for free under a Creative Commons license. For digital publications:

• Look for the "Republish This Story" button underneath each story. To republish online, simply click the button, copy the html code and paste into your Content Management System (CMS).
• Editorial cartoons and photo essays are not included under the Creative Commons license and therefore do not have the "Republish This Story" button option. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services, click here.
• You can’t edit our stories, except to reflect relative changes in time, location and editorial style.
• You can’t sell or syndicate our stories.
• Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization.
• If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using @MSTODAYnews on Facebook and @MSTODAYnews on Twitter.

For print publications:

• You have to credit Mississippi Today. We prefer “Author Name, Mississippi Today” in the byline. If you’re not able to add the byline, please include a line at the top of the story that reads: “This story was originally published by Mississippi Today” and include our website, mississippitoday.org.
• You can’t edit our stories, except to reflect relative changes in time, location and editorial style.
• You cannot republish our editorial cartoons, photographs, illustrations or graphics without specific permission (contact our managing editor Kayleigh Skinner for more information). To learn more about our cartoon syndication services, click here.
• Our stories may appear on pages with ads, but not ads specifically sold against our stories.
• You can’t sell or syndicate our stories.
• You can only publish select stories individually — not as a collection.
• Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization.
• If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using @MSTODAYnews on Facebook and @MSTODAYnews on Twitter.

If you have any other questions, contact Audience Development Director Lauchlin Fields.

Mississippians ages 50+ now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine

by Will Stribling, Mississippi Today
March 4, 2021

<h1>Mississippians ages 50+ now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine</h1> <p class="byline">by Will Stribling, Mississippi Today <br />March 4, 2021</p> <p>Gov. Tate Reeves announced on Thursday that eligibility for a COVID-19 vaccine is being expanded to include all Mississippians ages 50 years or older. There are currently over 11,000 open first-dose appointments available on the <a href="https://covidvaccine.umc.edu/">MSDH website</a>.</p> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"> <div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/tatereeves/status/1367514766923677702 </div> </figure> <p>The announcement comes one day after Reeves <a href="https://mississippitoday.org/2021/03/02/gov-tate-reeves-ditches-mask-mandates-covid-19-related-business-restrictions/">lifted all state-imposed mask mandates</a> and COVID-19 related restrictions on businesses. First responders and employees of K-12 schools, preschools and daycares <a href="https://mississippitoday.org/2021/02/23/mississippi-teachers-first-responders-eligible-for-covid-19-vaccines-on-march-1/">became eligible for vaccination</a> on Monday. People ages 16 to 49 years old are also eligible if they have a a <a href="https://msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/14,22816,420,976.html">qualifying chronic health condition</a> that puts them at higher risk from COVID-19. </p> <p><strong>MAP:</strong> <a href="https://mississippitoday.org/2021/02/18/map-where-mississippians-can-get-the-covid-19-vaccine/">Where to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Mississippi</a></p> <p>The Mississippi State Department of Health reported on Monday that 407,647 people in Mississippi — about 14% of the state’s population — have received at least their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. About 219,000 people have received both doses since the state began distributing vaccines in December.</p> <p>January saw the most coronavirus-related deaths in a single month in Mississippi, with 1,240 confirmed. The state also set new single day records for new cases: 3,255 cases on Jan. 7, and 98 deaths on Jan. 12.</p> <p>Additionally, the number of COVID-19 cases, COVID-related hospital admissions and clinic visits for COVID-19 like illnesses in Mississippi have been trending sharply downward in 2021.</p> <p>MSDH reported 479 new COVID-19 cases and 21 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday. This brings Mississippi to a total of 296,154 coronavirus cases and 6,764 deaths since the pandemic began in March 2020.</p> <p><strong>READ MORE:</strong> <a href="https://mississippitoday.org/2021/01/09/frequently-asked-questions-about-covid-19-vaccines-in-mississippi/">Frequently asked questions about COVID vaccines in Mississippi</a></p> <p>This <a target="_blank" href="https://mississippitoday.org/2021/03/04/mississippians-ages-50-now-eligible-for-covid-19-vaccine/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://mississippitoday.org">Mississippi Today</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/mississippitoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/MT_square-thumb.jpg?fit=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://mississippitoday.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=995671&ga=UA-75003810-1" style="width:1px;height:1px;"></p>

1