Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

A significant drop in the percentage of Franklin residents who have received the COVID-19 vaccine is a result of expanding the age range being reported on, according to Franklin’s city manager.

When asked about the notable change in percentage, Franklin City Manager Amanda C. Jarratt indicated it was due to “the addition of the 12-18-year-old population.”

As of early morning Aug. 17, the Virginia Department of Health was reporting on its website that 67.7% of the adult population in Franklin had at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 56.8% of the city’s adult population was fully vaccinated.

However, adjacent to those percentages is another category that looks similar but omits the word “adult” before “population.” The VDH was reporting as of early morning Aug. 17 that 52.7% of the population in Franklin had at least one dose of the vaccine, and 43.6% of the city’s population was fully vaccinated.

These statistics were accompanied by the disclaimer that federal doses administered were not included in those numbers.

The VDH lists vaccine statistics for two age groups below 18. Those groups are 12-15 and 16-17.

As of early morning Aug. 17, 27.4% of the 12- to 15-year-old population in Franklin had at least one dose of the vaccine, while 14.4% was fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, 38.5% of the 16- and 17-year-old population in Franklin had at least one dose, while 27.7% was fully vaccinated.