Coronavirus surges in Oklahoma, 1,082 new cases reported

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma State Department of Health reports a jump of 1,082 COVID-19 cases in the state, the first increase of more than 1,000 since early April.

The department’s Wednesday report comes a day after medical officials with the Healthier Oklahoma Coalition pleaded with residents to become vaccinated. The group said the increase is likely coming into the state from neighboring Arkansas and Missouri.

However, Oklahoma Medical Association President Dr. Mary Clarke said patients she’s met are hesitant to get the vaccine because they question whether it has been fully tested.

The first vaccine in the U.S. was approved by the FDA for emergency use authorization on December 10th, 2020. Over 150 million Americans are now fully vaccinated. Receiving the vaccine may cause people to feel sick, as the vaccine teaches the body to fight the type of protein that surrounds the virus and the body’s immune system can react the way it would to the actual virus, leading to symptoms like fever, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, or nausea. Some vaccine recipients have reported feeling sick for a few days while others have reported being lucky enough to only have a sore feeling in their arm for a few hours. Severe allergic reactions can occur in a small percentage of people, which is why vaccine providers observe patients for the first 15 minutes after the shot is administered and have supplies standing by to treat such reactions if they occur. The CDC has provided an abundance of information on their website cdc.gov for those who wish to learn more.