Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) District 6, which includes Seminole County, is leading the way in the COVID-19 vaccination effort.

According to the most recent OSDH data, District 6 has administered 30,675 vaccines, far outpacing the eight additional districts in the state. District 2 delivered the second highest number of vaccinations per district, reporting 18,404 inoculations.

In addition to Seminole County, District 6 includes Cleveland, Grady, Hughes, McClain and Pottawatomie counties. District 2 includes Alfalfa, Blaine, Canadian, Garfield, Grant, Kingfisher, Logan and Major counties.

According to Seminole Mayor Jeff Griffin, District 6 is not only leading the state in vaccinations - it’s leading the entire country.

“Today, I have to say that the Seminole County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), led by Ernie Willis, has helped make us the best in the nation,” Griffin said.

“According to recent numbers of vaccination statistics, Seminole County’s District is tops in the United States for getting the vaccine to our people. Overall, Oklahoma ranks ninth in the United States. But our district has almost doubled the output of the other eight districts in Oklahoma with more than 30,600 vaccines administered. When you scale that to a per 100,000 population, we see the payoff for the decade of planning for partnerships between many agencies,” Griffin added.

Griffin said those early planning efforts began to bear fruit when the coronavirus pandemic reached central Oklahoma.

“Planning pays off. Our LEPC has been meeting for years to prepare for various crises. The goal is to make coordination between agencies as seamless as possible when tragedy strikes. None of us really pay that much attention to their efforts until an emergency hits the proverbial fan. Then we expect perfection in heat of whatever crisis is looming,” Griffin stated.

Griffin noted that the Seminole County LEPC was originally organized by former Fire Chief Ed Lemmings and not all OSDH districts have an LEPC in place.

Griffin applauded the healthcare workers, volunteers and leaders who are spearheading the vaccination effort on the local level.

“The health department and their staff have been like superheroes,” Griffin said. “The response of the front line and supporting agencies like the Seminole Medical Center, paramedics, Seminole State College, Reynolds Wellness Center and volunteers have been almost miraculous. To have this kind of response from their efforts is simply astounding. We want all of these workers to know, the citizens are giving you a standing ovation!”

Below is a breakdown of vaccinations by district, excluding previously reported information.

District 1 (Beaver, Cimarron, Custer, Dewey, Ellis, Harper, Roger Mills, Texas, Woods and Woodward County): 7,517

District 3 (Creek, Kay, Lincoln, Noble, Osage, Pawnee and Payne County): 16,278

District 4 (Craig, Delaware, Mayes, Nowata, Ottawa, Rogers, Wagoner and Washington County): 17,080

District 5 (Beckham, Caddo, Comanche, Cotton, Greer, Harmon, Jackson, Kiowa, Tillman and Washita County): 17,730

District 7 (Adair, Cherokee, Haskell, McIntosh, Muskogee, Okfuskee, Okmulgee and Sequoyah County): 16,310

District 8 (Carter, Garvin, Jefferson, Johnston, Love, Marshall, Murray, Pontotoc and Stephens County): 15,914

District 9 (Atoka, Bryan, Choctaw, Coal, Latimer, Le Fiore, McCurtain, Pittsburg and Pushmataha County): 13,110