Broome County Executive Jason Garnar is reporting a 13 percent decrease in COVID-19 cases over the past week but notes the county’s 7-day positivity rate is still concerning at 5 percent.

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In his weekly update November 4, Garnar said 20 percent of COVID cases in the county are in residents under the age of 17. The Democrat says with the Federal approval of vaccines for younger children, the Health Department is ready to help get children age 5 to 11 vaccinated once the final guidelines are handed down.

Overall, Garnar says the county has to improve on its vaccination rate with 64 percent of residents now with one dose and 60 percent of the entire population fully vaccinated.

You can see daily updates on Broome County COVID and vaccination information at www.gobroomecounty.com.

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The Executive, for a second week is holding up Binghamton University as an example of the effectiveness of vaccination.  He says the campus had a big problem with COVID last year and at the start of the semester but now, with 99 percent of students and staff vaccinated, the BU positivity rate is 10 times lower than the county rate.

The Broome County Health Department, meanwhile is dialing up vaccine and booster clinics in the upcoming days and residents are reminded they can call local pharmacies and physicians to schedule appointments.

In addition, if transportation is an issue for seniors, Broome County Office for Aging can help. Call (607) 778-2411.

Answers to 25 common COVID-19 vaccine questions

Vaccinations for COVID-19 began being administered in the U.S. on Dec. 14, 2020. The quick rollout came a little more than a year after the virus was first identified in November 2019. The impressive speed with which vaccines were developed has also left a lot of people with a lot of questions. The questions range from the practical—how will I get vaccinated?—to the scientific—how do these vaccines even work?

Keep reading to discover answers to 25 common COVID-19 vaccine questions.

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