Iberia Parish President M. Larry Richard is asking residents of Iberia Parish to consider getting a COVID-19 vaccine.
On Wednesday, Richard and his wife Kim received their vaccinations at Iberia Medical Center.
Richard says that getting as many people vaccinated is an important step to slowing the virus and allowing parish residents to return to normal.
"The numbers in Iberia Parish are starting to come down as far as percent positivity. Our daily positive case numbers are starting to go down," he said. "We simply want this number to go down to where we can start to operate this parish as close to normal as possible."
Richard said that he has never been into vaccinations and has never taken a flu shot.
He said his the decision to take the COVID-19 vaccine was a personal decision after losing many of his friends to the coronavirus.
"I'm simply going to do my part to protect myself so I can be here, hopefully, for my wife and for my family," Richard said. "For me, it's about putting myself in a position where I can be around for a while."
In the region, Richard says that around 50 people are currently hospitalized and nine are on ventilators. At one of the highest points of the pandemic, Richard said that over 300 people were hospitalized in the region.
As vaccinations continue, Richard is hopeful that the number of cases, deaths, and hospitalizations will continue to fall.
"I would like to see the people of Iberia Parish, those that want to get the vaccine, come out to get the vaccine," he said. "Try to help the parish and try to get us back to normal."
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