Vaccine seen in the state by next week

Those most exposed, vulnerable will get it first

The first shipments of the highly anticipated Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine are expected to arrive in Texas early next week, and the first 2 million or so doses already are spoken for.

About 1.6 million health care workers and an additional 270,353 people who live in nursing homes and assisted living facilities will be prioritized, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services, which has released guidelines for vaccinating the state’s most exposed and vulnerable residents first.

Fewer than 250,000 doses of the vaccine will be shipped at that time to about 100 hospitals in Texas. The state also has partnered with H-E-B, Walgreens and CVS pharmacies to lessen the burden on local health authorities in administering shots.

If all goes well, the state expects to have a significant portion of health care workers and longterm care residents vaccinated by Jan. 1, said state Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, “which is really incredible, considering the magnitude of this.”

Gov. Greg Abbott has said the state expects to receive enough of the vaccine to inoculate 1.4 million Texans by the end of the year. Speaking at the White House vaccine summit Tuesday, Abbott said he anticipates “high demand” that

will outpace immediate supply, while also stressing no one will be forced to get vaccinated.

“There's lots of different people who are essential workers, no doubt about it,” said John Hellerstedt, the DSHS commissioner, at a Dec. 7 meeting of the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services. “But hospital staff — and I'm not just talking about doctors and nurses, I'm talking about housekeeping staff, the chaplains, the dietitans, anyone who's in that environment — they are constantly being exposed. Anything that would diminish the ability to be on the job makes them the No. 1 group of people we want to protect.”

By enrolling as providers, hospitals agree to follow the state's guidance on who gets the vaccine first, meaning they'll start administering it to their frontline workers next week, DSHS spokesperson Chris Van Deusen said.

Right now, Van Deusen said, a 17-member expert vaccine advisory panel is considering who should be eligible for the vaccine in the next phase. Those numbers likely will be about 9.5 million Texans considered to be at risk, and 3.9 million over age 65.

Officials caution that those numbers overlap with adults already in long-term care facilities.

Legislators and DSHS officials offered more details on the rollout at a meeting this week. Already, the state has a portal where clinics and other institutions can apply to become designated vaccine providers.

Imelda Garcia, associate commissioner of Laboratory and Infectious Disease Services at Health and Human Services, said that as of last week, there were more than 7,000 sites across the state that had signed up to administer the vaccine — including a mix of state clinics and federally tapped sites, such as major pharmacy chains.

Among the broad spectrum of health care workers, some are prioritized depending on their level of risk.

For example, hospital staffers working directly with COVID-19 — including physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, custodial staff, and other clinical staff — are first up for the initial doses.

Next come long-term care staff and residents at nursing homes, assisted living facilities and statesupported living centers, followed by other health care populations such as staff at outpatient and emergency clinics and pharmacies.

Who will get the vaccine after health care workers, critical-risk populations and those over 65 still is unclear, though people who are at increased risk for getting and transmitting the disease — college students and people who are incarcerated, for example — potentially are up next, per guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Teachers aren't yet mentioned on the tiered system. But Van Deusen said the expert council still is discussing eligibility for the next phase of vaccines in the new year, with law enforcement and educators in consideration.

There are 79,024 licensed peace officers in the state and about 800,078 public school teachers and staff, including school nurses, as of the 2019-20 academic year, the Texas Education Agency reported.

The state has designated the University of Texas at Austin as a vaccine distributor, and officials there said Tuesday that they plan on administering under 3,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine. But with those doses reserved for health care workers as well, no one knows when students or staff on campus can expect to get a vaccine.

“This is a difficult choice. We don't have all the vaccines we wish we did right away, and we have to make some difficult choices,” Hellerstedt said.