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Four days before 4.4 million Californians with disabilities and underlying health conditions became eligible for the vaccine, the California Department of Public Health issued guidance on the verification process.
Notably, the state does not require eligible disabled and ill people to submit documentation of their condition. Instead, everyone will have to certify themselves that they meet the criteria.
Disability rights advocates had been pushing for a process that would not create unnecessary obstacles, especially for the less mobile, caused by problems with vaccine hopping. The state also offered specific examples of people who might be eligible but who are not explicitly listed.
These include people who use regional centers, independent living centers, home support services, adult community services, Medi-Cal HIV / AIDS waivers, Medi-Cal home alternatives waivers and community-based, Medi-Cal Assisted Living Exemptions, All Inclusive Seniors Care Program, California Child Services Program if client is 16 to 21 years old, and California Genetically Disabled People’s Program.
The new guidelines came amid confusion over whether people in these categories could register for vaccinations. The state had previously set Monday as the first day of eligibility, but many were waiting for a clearer direction.
The high risk group includes 10 categories: people with cancer; stage 4 or higher chronic kidney disease; chronic lung disease; Down’s syndrome; weakened immune system by solid organ transplantation; pregnancy; sickle cell anemia; heart disease such as heart failure, coronary artery disease and cardiomyopathies (excluding hypertension); severe obesity; and type 2 diabetes mellitus.
With population estimates for the group ranging from 4 million to 6 million, and with other eligible groups totaling some 13 million, nearly half of all Californians will now be eligible for the vaccine.
Officials urged people to work with their health care providers to get vaccinated as a first step.
“Check with your regular health care provider first to see if they have any vaccines and appointments available. Health care providers who have vaccines may also begin to contact you, as a patient. with a serious and high-risk illness or disability known to the provider, to schedule your vaccine appointment, ”the state said.
Other options include local pharmacies, health department, community pop-up clinics, or using the MyTurn website.
The state said people will not be required to prove they have a disability and health problems when getting vaccinated.
“To protect confidentiality, documentation verifying the diagnosis or type of disability is not required, but instead anyone who meets the eligibility requirements will be asked to sign a self-attestation indicating that they meet the requirements. criteria for high-risk medical conditions or disability ”, the state mentioned.
Officials warned that supplies would be limited and people should expect delays.
California reserves 40% of doses for people in underserved communities and 10% for teachers. Many people aged 65 and over are also waiting to be vaccinated. And a few days from the end, confusion still reigns.
Additionally, Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine allocations will be near halt over the next two weeks as the company works to ramp up production, LA County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said during a press briefing on Wednesday.
“As we say every time we open up to a new industry, we still have limited supplies,” Ferrer said, indicating that eligibility within a group does not guarantee a date. “It means we’re really, really relieved to be able to start.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom said on Wednesday that “immediately” the state does not plan to receive additional doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine – which health officials have hailed as a potential game-changer in the event of a pandemic, because it only requires one dose and does not. should be shipped and stored at freezing temperatures.
In the bulletin it sent out on Thursday evening, the state listed the following eligibility categories:
People aged 16 to 64 may be eligible if they are considered to be most at risk of becoming seriously ill from COVID-19 EITHER because they have one or more of the following serious health conditions:
Cancer, common with weakened immune system Chronic kidney disease, stage 4 or later Chronic lung disease, oxygenated Down syndrome Solid organ transplant, resulting in weakened immune system Pregnancy Sickle cell disease Heart problems, such as heart failure , coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathy (but not hypertension) Severe obesity (body mass index ≥ 40 kg / m2) Type 2 diabetes mellitus with hemoglobin A1c greater than 7.5% OR if following developmental disability or other significant high-risk disability, one or more of the following criteria apply:
COVID-19 infection has the potential to cause serious, life-threatening illness or death; The acquisition of ORA COVID-19 will limit an individual’s ability to receive continuing care or services vital to their well-being and survival; OR Providing adequate and timely COVID care will be particularly difficult due to the individual’s disability.
Source: California Department of Public Health
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