Immunizations for Vermonters 75 and over to begin the week of January 25

Updated at 2:10 p.m.

Vermont will begin vaccinating people 75 and older the week of Jan. 25, opening the second phase of the state’s vaccination strategy, officials said at a press conference on Friday.

Vermonters who qualify will be able to register online or by phone. Registration details will be announced around Jan. 25, according to Mike Smith, secretary of the Human Services Agency. Calls could be saved, officials said, so the website is the preferred method for making appointments. If they need help, Smith asked young people in Vermont to help their older relatives register online.

A bit of a bottleneck is expected early on, which is why the state is urging people to register online, Smith said. About 200 people will staff the phones for per-call registrations, with plans to increase to around 400.

Most vaccinations will be handled by public clinics and partnerships with health care providers and pharmacies, Smith said. There will also be mobile EMS clinics for Vermonters.

At the current rate of federal vaccine dose distribution, the state predicts it will take six weeks to immunize the first group of 49,000 Vermonters aged 75 and older, Smith said.

“What we really need is more vaccine in the coming weeks so that we can accelerate our efforts,” Smith said. “But we want to set appropriate expectations and communicate clearly where we are and what we expect to avoid the frustration and disappointment that we have seen in other states.”

The Washington Post reported today that the federal vaccine reserve was already depleted when the Trump administration promised to release it, dashing hopes for expanded access. The Post said states were planning a windfall after federal officials said they would stop withholding second doses. But the approach had already changed and no stock exists.

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After those 75 and older, the state will extend eligibility to people 70 and older, then 65 and older, and then to younger people in Vermont with underlying illnesses.

Smith said all members of the population 65 and over will be vaccinated by the end of winter.

Vermont’s strategy is different from federal guidelines that urged states to immediately open vaccine eligibility to all people over 65 and over. Vermont officials believe their “age group” approach, starting with the state’s oldest residents, will avoid confusion and chaos.

The goal, Smith said, is to save lives. “The older you are, the greater your risk of serious illness and death from coronavirus,” he said.

Age is an important factor

State officials have released a chart showing death rates are highest among people aged 75 to 100.

“The older you are, the more vulnerable you are to serious complications and death from the virus. Since the start of the pandemic, approximately 92% of Covid hospitalizations in Vermont have been in people over 60, and more than 80% of deaths are in people over 70, ”Governor Phil Scott said.

The governor said the state continued to struggle with “an incredibly limited supply”.

“We need to focus on those populations first,” Scott said. “This will not only reduce the number of deaths, but it will also ease the pressure on our hospitals and healthcare systems. We believe this is the simplest and easiest way to understand, as well as the most effective and efficient way to vaccinate the people of Vermont faster. ”

People who register for vaccination appointments are asked to respect them. No-shows could spoil vaccines and hinder the state’s efforts to vaccinate as many people as possible.

Residents of Vermont should plan to receive their second dose of the vaccine at the same location where they received their first dose, Smith said. There will be clinics in every part of the state, with a view to reaching rural communities and people of color.

Dr Mark Levine, the state health commissioner, said education and communication efforts will be targeted at communities of color.

“[We want to] make sure we engage members of their community who are eligible, ”he said. Discussions are underway to locate vaccination clinics within walking distance of neighborhoods and interact with family members to ensure that all members of large households are vaccinated.

High risk youth

For the first time, the state announced on Friday the conditions that will allow young Vermonters at high risk to be vaccinated after the population 65 and over ends.

Levine said the following would be eligible: current cancer cases and people with chronic kidney disease, COPD, various heart diseases, any immunocompromised disease, severe obesity, type 2 diabetes, syndrome of Down, sickle cell anemia and pregnancy.

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These are almost all of the conditions that the CDC considers high-risk, with the exception of people who smoke, which Levine said were excluded because it’s “not really a condition.”

Also excluded is a broader category of conditions that the CDC says may be at increased risk, but are unconfirmed, including asthma and high blood pressure.

People will need to prove their residency in Vermont to qualify for the vaccine, Smith said, with one exception: if your primary supplier is in Vermont. “So if someone lives in the Upper Valley, but their doctor is in New Hampshire, they should still be looking for a vaccine in Vermont,” he said. Many Vermonters see doctors at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire.

So far, the state has administered about 35,000 doses to nearly 30,000 people, Smith said.

The plan is to vaccinate all residents of assisted living and retirement homes by the end of January. Healthcare workers, emergency responders, hospice workers and home health care staff are also on track to be vaccinated by this date.

The state has the capacity to immunize 9,000 people per week.

State approaches 10,000 cases

The state’s test positivity rate is now around 2.7%. The total number of deaths has risen to 163. About 44 people are currently hospitalized and six are in intensive care.

Levine said the state was tracking 42 outbreaks of Covid and the total number of cases is expected to exceed 10,000 next week. However, only 11% of cases are associated with outbreaks, he said. Most infections are due to community transmission.

The highest rate of positivity is in Addison County following an outbreak caused by a Christmas rally at Victory Baptist Church in Vergennes, Levine said.

The state has received a number of complaints about Covid in ski areas, but Levine said that while there have been “sporadic cases among employees,” no outbreak has been associated with a resort.

“We don’t see any case of transmission of skiing itself or social activities related to skiing,” he said.

• Correction: An earlier version of this report had an incorrect number for the number of people hospitalized.

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