Mobile vaccination unit hitting Philadelphia streets Tuesday
"We are better than we were. I can tell you the Monday after Christmas, our positivity rate was 45%," said Dr. Ala Stanford.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Many doctors, nurses and volunteers from across the Philadelphia region spent Monday making sure anyone who wanted a COVID-19 test or vaccine was able to get one.
Dr. Ala Stanford, the founder of the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, has been on a mission to make sure that's possible.
"We are better than we were. I can tell you the Monday after Christmas, our positivity rate was 45%. We watched that drop down, and most recently it is 20% to 22%. Roughly one in five people you come in contact with probably has COVID," said Stanford.
FEMA has been deployed to North Philadelphia to help for the next 30 days with a mobile vaccination unit that will hit the streets starting Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Paul Robeson High School.
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In Delaware, the state partnered with FEMA to open a free COVID-19 drive-thru testing site at the DMV in New Castle County.
Governor John Carney says the state has seen hospitalizations decreasing in the last few days.
"The number has gone down from a peak of 759 a few days ago to 711 today or yesterday, so that's good news. It may be a result of our efforts to help them decompress," said Carney.
Meantime, a pop-up testing and vaccination site in Camden, New Jersey had a steady flow of people as parents and kids prepare to head back to work and school Tuesday.
Teesha Cooper, a registered nurse says, "We are definitely seeing cases continue. It is a lot of mild symptoms for those vaccinated."
She says COVID-19 symptoms can mimic the flu or common cold, so it is important to get tested. The recommended time to test is 3 to 5 days after exposure.
