The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Vulnerable, essential workers floated as state’s first COVID-19 vaccine recipients
The first batches of COVID-19 vaccine to hit Connecticut will likely go to vulnerable populations and essential workers first, Gov. Ned Lamont and members of his vaccine advisory group indicated Thursday.
“I can’t tell you when it’s gonna be here, it’s not going to be as soon as some of the political promises” Lamont said Thursday during his afternoon press conference, indicating it would be available in the early part of 2021.
The state’s Department of Public Health is submitting a draft of its plan for immunization to the federal Centers for Disease Control on Friday.
The vaccine, when ready, most likely won’t be available in large quantities until well into 2021.
As a result, Connecticut health officials are working to prioritize who gets it first— and ensuring the rollout goes safely and smoothly.
“The vaccination will happen in a couple of phases,” Lamont said Thursday. “We’re thinking about the critical workforce, otherwise known as the essential workers. We want to make sure they get vaccinated, making sure that they feel safe being at work.”
Eventually, the state anticipates there will be enough vaccine doses for every resident, Dr. Reginald Eadie, co-chair of the vaccine advisory group said later that evening.
“However, early on in the state’s vaccine program, there’s likely going to be a limited supply. So as the governor alluded to, we’ve got to prioritize initially who get’s the vaccine,” Eadie said.
He said he suspects the first priority will be “vulnerable populations and those at higher risk of developing severe illnesses.”
Another factor will be tracking which patients receive which doses of vaccine, so that health officials can trace which lot of vaccine was administered in case there are issues.
That’s also important because health officials expect the vaccine may involve two doses, said Kathy Kudish, immunization program manager for the Department of Public Health.
An executive order is also being drafted to address reporting requirements, Kudish said.
The state’s submission of a draft immunization plan comes as public health officials don’t have a clear picture of the vaccine itself yet.
“While we have put together this framework that we are submitting tomorrow to CDC, I want to be super clear with all of you that we’ve done this really ... with limited information about the actual vaccine itself and the requirements and population,” Acting DPH Commissioner Deidre Gifford told the advisory group Thursday.
She emphasized the submitted plan will be a draft form, and said the advisory group needs to remain ‘flexible and adept.”
“We’re dotting I’sand crossing T’s throughout this week,” she said.