‘We just have to keep at it’: Madison County Health Dept. officials say the key to curbing COVID spread is communication and vaccinations

MADISON COUNTY — With the recent surge in Covid-19 infections across the nation, Madison County Health administrator Stephenie Mellinger is pushing the need for their residents to get vaccinated. “We just have to keep at it. It’s frustrating, it’s frustrating for everyone,” she said.

“The bottom line is, vaccinations. We are sitting at about 52% ages 5 and older in Madison county and we can do better than that. It’s occurring in 95% of people who are unvaccinated. So those people who are in our hospitals, less than 5% are vaccinated,” said Mellinger.

Madison County, like many counties across the sate are seeing a rise in cases. But what is being done to curb that spread? Mellinger said, “Remember to get vaccinated, wash your hands, keep your distance. All those things that we have been saying for nearly 2 years, it’s still important.”

She added, “We are trying to communicate that very message. Look our hospitals are filling up, our healthcare system is taxed, we all have a role to play.”

Mellinger said communication is key and added they are still trying to share the same messages they were back when the pandemic began, “We are still trying to encourage people to wash their hands, distance, make sure you keep that safe distance between people. Stay in your social bubble, try to limit how many people you are around if at all possible. Masking when you are indoors and around many people, we can’t forget that.”

She said they’ve been getting creative, using social media to spread awareness, conversing with the hospitals, and educating people when they come into their building, “We try to remind people, like look, this is still an issue. I guess more than anything it’s communication.”