People living in the Needham area have taken up the vaccine more readily than others in Johnson County.
As of this week, 70% of the 290 eligible people who live in that zip code are vaccinated against COVID-19, reaching a rate that some experts say provides herd immunity.
Herd immunity occurs when enough of the overall population is immune to a virus either through vaccines or from surviving an infection. Health experts have placed herd immunity somewhere between 70% and 85% for COVID-19.
Though the true threshold for herd immunity is unclear, the goal of getting as many people as possible vaccinated remains.
In The Needham zip code, 204 of the 290 residents who are eligible for the vaccine are fully vaccinated, according to data from the Indiana Department of Health.
Aside from Needham, three other zip codes in Johnson County are reporting a majority of the population vaccinated, IDH data shows.
Bargersville is likely next in line to reach community protection, with 64% of residents fully vaccinated.
In Greenwood’s two zip codes, about 56% of the eligible populations are fully vaccinated.
Franklin, Nineveh and Trafalgar have vaccination rates in the low 40% range.
Edinburgh and Whiteland are at 34% and 37%, respectively.
As of Friday, more than 64,300 Johnson County residents — about 48% of the county’s eligible population — are fully vaccinated. Across the state, 2.6 million Hoosiers — 45.6% — are fully vaccinated.
Fewer people are getting vaccinated now at local clinics, and local public health officials are looking to address knowledge gaps about vaccine effectiveness and make the vaccine more accessible to the working population.
With a county-wide vaccination rate of 48%, there is much work to be done, said Betsy Swearingen, health department director.
“I think our vaccine numbers are disappointing,” Swearingen said. “As a satellite county of Marion County, the busiest and biggest county in the state, I feel like more people should be vaccinated.”
Both the health department and Johnson Memorial Health are thinking of ways to get the vaccine into more arms.
One of the most effective ways to spread vaccine information is word of mouth. Anyone who is knowledgeable or passionate about the vaccine can help the county reach herd immunity by convincing family, friends and co-workers to get it, said Dr. David Dunkle, Johnson Memorial president and CEO.
Even at a micro level, herd immunity among family members, social groups and workplaces is a good place to start, Dunkle said.
“It is the small wins first and you expand,” he said. “There are always going to be outliers. … That’s the beauty of herd immunity. You don’t need everyone to be vaccinated.”
For those who continue to put it off, there is little to no wait at any vaccine clinic in the county, Swearingen said. And with vaccines now available at every chain pharmacy, it is more accessible than ever.
Johnson Memorial is transitioning away from its mass Pfizer clinic at the hospital to providing on-demand vaccines at family medicine offices. Since many have been relying on their doctor’s opinion about the vaccine, having the vaccine available at doctor’s offices will eliminate barriers to accessing it, he said.
Right now, the vaccine is available from family physicians who practice at the hospital but not at other locations yet. After the first week in July, the hospital clinic will close and family physicians at all offices will have access to a supply of vaccines for their patients, Dunkle said.
The health department also continues to offer vaccines and COVID-19 tests at the Compass Park event center. The number of vaccines and tests given at the clinic are both extremely low, but the services remain available on a walk-in basis, Swearingen said.
Southern Johnson County has just two sites — the CVS Pharmacy in Trafalgar and Windrose Health in Edinburgh.
Barriers to the vaccine likely still exist for rural workers with a full plate and little time to travel for a vaccine.
The health department has not looked into additional vaccine sites and has turned down a few requests to set up pop-up sites at local churches because the number of vaccines that would be given likely would not justify the cost, Swearingen said.
A more cost-effective way to get vaccines to more people could be setting up a vaccine clinic at a summer event or setting aside doses for businesses that want to increase vaccination rates among their employees. The health department is looking into the first option and is open to the second if business owners express enough interest, she said.
Even with less than a majority vaccinated, there are few COVID-19 cases. Still, a significant risk exists for unvaccinated people until herd immunity is reached, experts say.
Around the state, 314 new COVID-19 cases were reported Friday, including eight in Johnson County, according to the state health department. Four additional COVID-19 deaths were reported Friday, including one in Johnson County.
There are still two or three patients a day battling COVID-19 at the hospital, Dunkle said. The patient count has dipped to zero occasionally, but has not stayed there long, he said.
Patients are not just elderly and high risk anymore. Patients of all ages, even adolescents, can still become very sick, Dunkle said.
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Here is a look at vaccination rates in Johnson County by zip code:
Needham, 46162: 70.3%
Bargersville, 46106: 64.9%
Greenwood, 46142: 56.4%
Greenwood, 46143: 56%
Franklin, 46131: 43.8%
Trafalgar, 46181: 42.2%
Nineveh, 46164: 41.9%
Whiteland, 46184: 37.6%
Edinburgh, 46124: 34.4%
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Here is a look at where those 12 and older can get a vaccine:
Register for the following sites online at ourshot.in.gov, by calling 211 or any Johnson County Public Library branch:
Johnson Memorial Hospital
When: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday.
Where: 1125 W Jefferson St, Franklin. Parking in Blue Lot H.
Type: Pfizer.
Walk-in: Available
Compass Park
When: Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturdays 8 a.m. to noon.
Where: Event Center, 690 State Street, Franklin.
Type: Moderna, limited doses of Pfizer.
Walk-in: Available
Adult and Child Health Franklin
When: Vaccines available on Fridays.
Where: 1860 Northwood Plaza, Franklin
Type: Moderna.
Walk-in: Available
Windrose Health Edinburgh
When: Vaccines available 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday and Friday.
Where: 911 E. Main Cross Street, Edinburgh
Type: Multiple.
Walk-in: Available
Community Health Annex South
When: Vaccines available Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: 1346 East County Line Road, Indianapolis. Drive-thru clinic.
Type: Pfizer.
Walk-in: Available
Franciscan Health Indianapolis
When: Vaccines available Monday to Saturday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: 8111 S Emerson Ave, Indianapolis.
Type: Pfizer.
Walk-in: Available
Walmart and Sam’s Club Pharmacies
Where: All Walmart stores in Johnson County; Sams Club at 1101 Windhorst Way, Greenwood.
Type: Federal Retail Pharmacy, type may vary.
Appointments for the following sites are made with the pharmacy, vaccine type may vary:
Kroger Pharmacies
Where: All Kroger stores in Johnson County.
Registration: kroger.com/rx/covid-eligibility or call 866-211-5320
Meijer Pharmacies
Where: 2390 N Morton St, Franklin; 150 S Marlin Dr, Greenwood.
Registration: Text COVID to 75049, visit clinic.meijer.com/register.
Walgreens Pharmacies
Where: All Walgreens locations in Johnson County.
Registration: walgreens.com/findcare/vaccination/covid-19
CVS Pharmacies
Where: All CVS locations in Johnson County.
Registration: cvs.com/vaccine/intake/store/covid-screener/covid-qns
Costco Pharmacy
Where: 4628 E. County Line Rd, Indianapolis.
Registration: costco.com/covid-vaccine.html
Source: Indiana Department of Health
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