(NEXSTAR) – As the number of Americans vaccinated continues to grow, cases of COVID-19 are declining, leaving officials optimistic that efforts to slow the spread are working.

Nine U.S. states have given 70% of adult residents at least one vaccine, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These states are Vermont, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Connecticut, Maine, New Jersey and Rhode Island.

Earlier this month, President Biden announced a July 4 goal of 70% of American adults receiving at least one shot.

States still below the 50% threshold include Idaho, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Georgia, West Virginia, Louisiana, Wyoming, Alabama, and Arkansas.

Forty-nine percent of the total United States population has received at least one COVID vaccine, and new infections in the United States have fallen to levels not seen since June 2020. The seven-day average of new cases dropped to less than 30,000 a day last week, and the average number of deaths over the past week has also fallen to 552.

“As each week passes and we continue to see progress, this data gives me hope,” CDC director Rochelle Walensky said at a press conference on Friday.

A number of businesses across the country have run promotions to encourage people to get vaccinated with offers of free and discounted food and other products.

In Ohio, the state created a lottery with designs and million-dollar scholarships to get people to get vaccinated.

The Biden administration also announced a partnership with Uber and Lyft to provide Americans with free rides to and from vaccination sites.

People are celebrating new freedoms amid the positive data – residents of Mobile, Alabama even held a Mardi Gras-style parade over the weekend in which a crowd of maskless revelers made up for the carnival celebrations canceled, despite officials urging people to show personal responsibility.

Other states, like California, have announced that a full reopening is imminent – if hospitalization rates and vaccine supply numbers move in the right direction.