Dentists can participate in state efforts to vaccinate COVID-19 Mainers

Maine dentists have been added to a group of medical professionals who provide the COVID-19 vaccine to support large-scale efforts to immunize state residents from deadly viruses.

“Dentists give thousands of injections each year,” said Dr. Jonathan Shenkin, a dentist at Augusta. “We are very comfortable with needles.”

While Healthcare workers who usually vaccinate – Nurses, pharmacists, doctors – will continue to do so as the COVID-19 vaccine initiative unfolds. Depending on the scale of the surgery, planners will consider other medical professionals. Maine already plans to ask paramedics to help administer the vaccine with the goal of ultimately immunizing most of the 1.3 million people in Maine. Dentists can add up to 765 people to the vaccination workforce.

The Maine Dental Association has sent a letter to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Maine and the Department of Health and Human Services in Maine to provide vaccination services.

“This is an important initiative as Maine is conducting an unprecedented campaign to vaccinate residents against COVID-19 on behalf of the Maine Dental Association and its 765 member dentists. Consider leveraging the skills and services of your dentist, “MDA President David Kerr said in a letter on December 8.

The Maine Dental Hygienists Association has drafted a similar letter in 2021 to vaccinate people in Maine, said Sarah Clarke, MDHA President.

Angela Westhoff, Executive Director of the Maine Dental Association, said on Tuesday that dentists would help if needed when vaccination became an “all-hands-on-deck” operation for Maine. Said he felt it was important.

“I’m happy to help if I have a role,” Westhoff said.

Shenkin said he believes that Maine “will need as many people as possible to get the vaccine.”

Governor Janet Mills said immunity to patients is not currently covered by the dentist’s license and requires a temporary executive order to allow dentists to be vaccinated, Westhoff said. It was.

Westhoff said there was no response from the state. In an email reply to the question, main CDC spokesman Robert Long said it was too early to say whether the dentist would join the program.

“We thank the dentists for their offer, but they are publicly vaccinated until we receive more specific information from manufacturers and the federal government about the pace and amount of vaccine allocation to Maine and financing. It is not possible to decide how it can be incorporated into the program. Modana vaccine approval and other important matters, “Long said.

Deployment of the first two approved vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna is expected to take several months. The first dose arrived this week, and Maine was able to receive approximately 75,000 doses by the end of December. However, large-scale operations are expected to begin in 2021, with hundreds of thousands, and eventually millions, of doses sent to Maine for pharmacies, clinics, hospitals, and large-scale vaccinations. It will be distributed to the clinic.

According to Shenkin, the situation is fluid, but up to 20 states have already allowed dentists to be vaccinated, have issued emergency rules to allow dentists to be vaccinated, or are considering issuing them. doing. New Hampshire and Connecticut have issued urgent rules to add dentists to a group of medical professionals who can vaccinate patients.

Shenkin said she sees the role of dentists in helping community vaccination clinics, as well as occasional flu clinics in community centers and hospitals.

He said COVID-19 vaccine, or other vaccines such as flu shots, may be available at some dental clinics.

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