CT Coronavirus Vaccine: 5 New Things To Know

CONNECTICUT — Connecticut is gearing up for a wider coronavirus vaccine release in the coming weeks in a race against the virus that so far has claimed the lives of more than 6,200 residents.

Gov. Ned Lamont and his team gave more answers about the rollout plans and how well distribution has gone so far.

How many vaccine doses have been administered in Connecticut?

More than 100,000 doses have been administered as of Thursday with around 1,800 being second doses.

Connecticut ranks sixth in the nation per capita for vaccine doses administered.

What has been the participation rate so far?

At least 85 percent of nursing home residents opted to get the vaccine, Lamont said. The rate is much lower for nursing home staff at around 40 to 50 percent.

The 1199 SEIU union launched a campaign to encourage its members to take the vaccine. The campaign features union members telling stories about why they want to get the vaccine.

“I saw a lot of my patients die, a lot,” said Verna Redwood, a CNA at Autumn Lake Healthcare in a union message. “And the second reason is I have a granddaughter, she is just nine. Two years ago she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes… so I have to protect them, protect my residents, that’s our number one reason.”

The rate for other frontline healthcare workers fall between 50 and 70 percent.

What is the timeline for phase 1b?

Phase 1a includes frontline healthcare workers as well as nursing home residents and staff. That phase is expected to finish within two or three weeks, Lamont said. That keeps in line with the state’s original timeline of finishing 1a around the end of January. The state will quickly move to new phases as it sees demand in the current phase dwindling.

Phase 1b groups will begin to be notified next week and initial appointment dates should be scheduled in the next one or two weeks.

That phase could last nine to 10 weeks if it were limited to CDC recommendations, participation was round 60 percent and vaccine supply remained at stable levels.

Who is in 1b?

The full list of those eligible hasn’t been decided yet, but Lamont said he would make a final decision by next week. He is leaning heavily on his vaccine advisory group’s recommendations.

The vaccine advisory group’s subcommittee on distribution affirmed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations for frontline essential workers including: education, manufacturing, corrections workers, U.S. Postal service workers, public transit and grocery store workers. They also affirmed CDC recommendations that people over the age of 75 be part of 1b.

There are more than 800,000 people in Connecticut who fit the CDC 1b categories.

The group also recommended that residents of congregate settings such as prisons be added to the list. It also recommended that food service workers and sanitation workers be added to the list.

See also: CT Hospital Capacity Details Released As Infection Rate Rises

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How does Connecticut’s vaccine approach compare to other states?

Lamont is aiming for a middle ground between micromanagement and a “wild west” distribution. He was critical of states that are going to the extremes.

“That type of specificity is really slowing down implementation of the vaccines in some states,” he said of states who are micromanagers.

Instead, Lamont said the state is working closely with healthcare professionals, but is giving them discretion on how to administer the vaccine on a timely basis.

New York State has a very rigid distribution plan. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio complained that communication from Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been poor and there is confusion about when phase 1b will start and who falls into the plan. The city has administered less than half of received doses.

A New Rochelle Hospital was fined and their vaccine doses taken away after they started vaccinating school and city employees with the vaccine before it was authorized by Cuomo.

Meanwhile, many Florida counties are using Eventbrite, a platform normally used for social event organizations, for their distribution sign-up.

Florida is also allowing anyone over the age of 65 to get the vaccine and has left it up to counties and local health departments to administer vaccines. Some seniors camped out overnight to get a shot.

“The spread can be very rapid and very serious in those settings, so the allocation group wanted to make sure they were included,” said Acting state Department of Health Commissioner Deidre Gifford about congregate settings.

There is also some debate about whether to add people younger than 75 who have comorbidities that place that at higher risk to 1b or to keep them in the CDC recommended 1c slot.

Gifford cautioned members of the advisory group that adding too many people to 1b would slow down the rollout for other members of the group.