First Vax Plans Released

Health Department announces distribution plan. General public availability  likely to be spring, summer

From our friends at DHD#10:

December 16, 2020 – District Health Department #10 has been working hard to develop a distribution plan for when the first shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine arrives. Following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), the COVID-19 vaccine will be prioritized in the following way (please note the priority phases are subject to change):

1.  PHASE 1A includes: 
   1. Persons serving in healthcare settings with high risk for COVID exposure 
      1. EMS staff 
      2. Medical First Responders 
      3. DHD#10 vaccine clinic staff 
   2. Residents of long-term care facilities 
      1. Many long-term care facilities are partnering with CVS or Walgreens to receive the vaccine 
      2. For those who are not partnering with pharmacies, DHD#10 will provide the vaccine to residents 
   3. Residents of homes for the aged and adult foster care centers 
   4. Other health workers who conduct high-risk procedures, have direct contact with patients, and have skills critical to keeping the healthcare system functioning 
2. PHASE 1B includes:  
   1. Essential workers such as 
      1. Police 
      2. Firefighters 
      3. Corrections Officers 
      4. Education Sector 
      5. Food & Agriculture  
      6. Utilities 
3. PHASE 1C includes: 
   1. Adults with high-risk medical conditions 
   2. Adults 65 and older 
4. PHASE 2 includes:
   1. Remainder of Phase 1 population 
   2. Critical populations 
   3. General population

 “District Health Department #10 has established a COVID-19 Vaccination Planning Team that has been working daily to develop our plans for distributing the COVID-19 vaccine when it arrives,” states Kevin Hughes, Health Officer for DHD#10. “Our goal is to get it to the priority groups as soon as possible without delay.” 

 DHD#10’s COVID-10 vaccine distribution plan is as follows (subject to change): 

• DHD#10 will be receiving the Moderna vaccine in the first shipment, set to arrive the week of 12/21/2020. 
  • MDHHS was responsible for making the determinations for where the first doses of Moderna and Pfizer vaccines would be distributed. 
  • The Pfizer vaccine should be available for use by DHD#10 when the subsequent vaccine orders are placed. 
• DHD#10 will begin vaccinating Phase 1A priority groups the week of 12/28/2020, beginning with:  
  • EMS 
  • Medical First Responders 
  • Residents of long-term care facilities who have not partnered with pharmacies for their vaccine 
  • DHD#10 vaccination clinic staff 
• DHD#10 will notify each priority group directly on the specifics of date, time, and location. There is no early sign-up or registration. 
• DHD#10 is currently planning for vaccine distribution for all other priority groups and will notify each group on scheduled vaccine clinics. 

 It is anticipated that the COVID-19 vaccination will be readily available for the general public in the spring or summer of 2021. 

 For more information about the COVID-19 vaccine, including an educational video on the development and safety of the COVID-19 vaccine by our Medical Director Dr. Jennifer Morse, go to www.dhd10.org/covid-19-vacccine.  

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