The federal government increased Kentucky’s COVID vaccine allocation, but demand is still far outpacing supply. Public health officials said on Wednesday that many of the shots currently being administered are from reserves Kentucky accumulated while organizing a distribution system. Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack reported that the state only receives about 68,000 shots a week.

Last week the federal government added 16% to Kentucky’s COVID vaccine supply, and the state will receive an additional 5% next week. However, thousands of people have flooded phone lines to book vaccination appointments. Dr. Stack warned that patience is required. “It will take a while to reach everyone who wants to be vaccinated,” he remarked.

Kentucky is changing how it reports vaccination efforts. Dr. Stack stated that the state’s website, kycovid19.ky.gov, now shows how many unique people health officials vaccinated weekly. The website also includes the total number of first doses received by the state and Kentucky’s utilization percentage. Dr. Stack stressed that Kentucky is protecting the needed second dose for anyone who got the first shot.

Wednesday’s report included 2,592 new cases, an 8.53% positivity rate and 51 additional deaths. The state saw the number of “red” counties drop to 106. Dr. Stack urged people not to host or attend Super Bowl parties this weekend, fearing public gatherings would cause another spike in the state’s numbers.