CDC Updates Mask Guidance; City and Schools Partner to Host Vaccine Clinic Mayor McKinley Price to vaccinate residents during event on August 3

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has issued new guidance to address the rising number of COVID cases across the nation. To offer additional protection from the Delta variant and prevent the spread, the CDC recommends those who are fully vaccinated wear a mask indoors in public if they are in an area of substantial or high transmission. The CDC rates Newport News as having a “high” level of community transmission since we’ve seen 49.66 cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days and an 11% positivity rate. Those who are unvaccinated or not fully-vaccinated are strongly encouraged to wear masks in all settings.
Protect yourself, those you love and our community by getting a COVID vaccine. The vaccine is available for free in Virginia to anyone 12 and over. Young people ages 12-17 can get a Pfizer vaccine; those 18 and older can get a Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccine. To find a clinic, pharmacy or doctor’s office offering vaccines, visit www.vaccinefinder.org.
The City of Newport News, Newport News Public Schools (NNPS) and the Peninsula Health District are hosting a COVID-19 vaccine clinic on Tuesday, August 3 from 1 to 4 p.m. at Warwick High School, 51 Copeland Lane (on the corner of Copeland Lane and Warwick Boulevard). The clinic is open to anyone 12 and older. The two-dose Pfizer vaccine will be available to those 12 and up; the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will be available to those 18 and older.
“The emergence of the Delta variant and the sharp rise of COVID cases in Newport News and the Commonwealth makes getting the vaccine more important and urgent than ever,” said Newport News Mayor McKinley L. Price. “We have come a long way since the pandemic began in early 2020, but we aren’t out of the woods. Our friends and neighbors, primarily those who are unvaccinated, are still getting sick and dying. We must continue to fight COVID-19, and the best way to do this is by getting a vaccine.”
“I am fully vaccinated and I made sure my family members got the vaccine as well. I believe so strongly in the vaccine and its importance that I’ve volunteered as a vaccinator during clinics throughout the city, and I’ll be at the clinic on August 3 to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. Now’s the time for those who have not yet had the vaccine to roll up their sleeves.”
If you are fully vaccinated, help by encouraging others to attend the clinic on August 3. Offer to drive someone there, book an appointment for a friend or neighbor and provide information on the vaccines and their safety and efficacy.
Those 12 and older in need of a vaccine are invited to attend the event on August 3. Appointments are strongly encouraged; walk-ins are welcome and will be served based on vaccine availability. Book your appointment online today and get a shot from Mayor Price or one of the other vaccinators!
Newport News Public Schools encourages parents and guardians to register their children for first and second dose appointments. Parents/guardians must be present with the young person at the clinic to sign a consent form or the student must bring a signed consent form with them to the vaccine clinic. Students who do not have a signed consent form will not be able to receive the vaccine. Vaccine clinic consent forms are available in all school offices and at the NNPS Administration Building at 12465 Warwick Boulevard.