Lee County government reported 44 new residents have tested positive for COVID-19 over the past week, marking the second consecutive week with numbers in that range.

5,549 total county residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since tracking began in March of 2020, including 73 who have died.

The first two months of 2021 saw large numbers of residents testing positive, with some weeks in January topping 200 or even 300 cases. That number dipped below 100 for the first time last week, with just 40 new cases.

Details about patients are not released in accordance with federal health privacy laws.

Meanwhile, Lee County government has reopened vaccine registration after shutting it down on March 8 due to a lack of supply.

The Lee County COVID-19 Vaccine Registration Call Center may be reached at (919) 842-5744 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

An on-line pre-registration form is available at leecountync.gov/covid19. The public may submit an online form and will be contacted within five business days by county staff to complete the registration process and receive information about the next available county vaccination clinic.

COVID-19 vaccine registration is open to individuals in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the NCDHHS vaccine rollout plan at https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/vaccines. Registrations and pre-registration forms will not be accepted from individuals in Group 5; if you are in Group 5 and have submitted a pre-registration form online, please note that you will be required to resubmit a pre-registration form or contact the call center to register once vaccine eligibility has been expanded to Group 5. The Lee County Health Department does not keep a wait list for future groups