People 75 and older, essential workers next in line for vaccine: CDC
They voted Sunday to determine the order of high-risk priority groups for the vaccine’s distribution.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has determined that people who are 75 years of age and older, as well as frontline essential workers, must be next to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted on Sunday to determine the order of high-risk priority groups for the vaccine’s distribution, which could last for months.
The targeting of specific citizenry would be in phases, and Phases 1a, 1b and 1c were determined during the vote.
The first phase was health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities, the beginning of which had already rolled out.
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Phase 1b was solidified on Sunday, with adults over the age of 75 and frontline workers who are “key to societal functioning.” Teachers, police officers, firefighters, prison officers and grocery store workers are set to be included in this group starting in January.
Phase 1c will kick off in February, with access to vaccines for adults 65 and older, as well as people with underlying medical conditions that make them high-risk. Essential workers who are not consumer-facing — including waste management, trucking and food service — will be included in this population segment.
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The experts on the panel expect Phase 1b to happen quickly, possibly in just one month’s time.
Further, the panel says one phase does not have to be complete before moving on to another. Also, the determination can be made by state and local governments.
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Funding for vaccine distribution, they note, is essential.
“A COVID-19 vaccination program is not just about vaccines, but about getting those vaccines to the people who need them,” said Dr. Jeffrey Duchin, a health officer for Seattle and King County in Washington state, who represented county health officials at Sunday’s meeting. “Operation Warp Speed has delivered Cadillac vaccines to us, but they’ve come with empty gas tanks, and we have a long and difficult road ahead.”
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Congress has approved funds for vaccine distribution in the new stimulus package that they are expected to vote on today.
The weekend saw congressional leaders being openly criticized after being immunized against coronavirus ahead of most Americans.
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