When can I get the vaccine?It depends on your health, your profession, and where you live

When Two Covid-19 vaccines approved for emergency use And politicians, Health care workers And it’s no wonder that the residents of the care facility are rolling up their sleeves. What about me and my loved ones?

There are many factors involved in the answer, which depend on each person’s health, what they do for their livelihood, and where they live.

According to experts, the state handles vaccination campaigns differently.Some campaigns May be smoother than othersHowever, if there is one piece of advice to remember, this is it. Continue to take steps to protect yourself and your family until you are vaccinated.

This means keeping on your mask, staying socially distant, avoiding large gatherings, and washing your hands regularly.

“People just have to put up with it,” he said. Claire Hannan, Secretary General of the Vaccination Managers Association. “They need to be vigilant and protect themselves from viruses.”

“I’ll leave that to Dr. (Anthony) Forch,” she said, with top US infectious disease experts when it comes to when Americans can relax and return to face-to-face relationships. President-elect Joe Biden’s Next Chief Medical Advisor..

I have more questions. Here’s more answers:

Who will be vaccinated first?

As widely reported, healthcare professionals and long-term care resident Lined up firstFollowed by adults over 75 years old, and frontline key workers like first responders.

The· Next stage According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Immunization Implementation Advisory Board, adults aged 65 to 75, adults aged 16 to 64 with high-risk medical conditions, and “other essential workers.”

Who are the essential workers?

The ACIP defines frontline essential workers as those employed in “a sector that is essential to the functioning of society and has a significantly higher risk of exposure” to the coronavirus. In addition to first responders, it includes people working in education, food, agriculture, manufacturing, correction, the United States Postal Service, public transport, and grocery stores. There are about 30 million people in this category.

Jockey for vaccine

According to ACIP, other important workers are those who work in the transportation, logistics, food service industry, construction, housing, finance, information technology, energy, sanitation, media, law, public safety, and water and sewage industries. This category contains about 57 million Americans.

When does the average person get the vaccine?

This is a moving target determined by a large number of variables. Dr. Vivek Mercy, a candidate for Biden’s presidential surgeon, said he believes that if everything goes according to plan, it may take until late spring to complete vaccination of high-risk populations. .. That said, midsummer could be a “realistic” timeline for the general public to start vaccination, he told NBC.

“If all goes well, by the end of spring, people in the low-risk category may be able to get this vaccine,” he said. “But it really will have to go exactly on schedule. I think it’s more realistic to think that this vaccine may reach the general public near early autumn in midsummer. . “

According to a recent ACIP chart, the general public may start vaccination in about 20 weeks, with a target set in May. This is “just as I was thinking,” Hannan said.

Hannan recommends monitoring the details on the state’s health department website, as the state handles rollouts differently. She said that some states have set up “public dashboards” and others expect residents to register to sign up for renewals.

What are the factors driving the rollout phase?

According to Hannan, the two main factors are supply and demand, basically the number of people vaccinated and the amount of vaccine available.

The Pfizer / BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have already received emergency use approval, but Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca are in the process of producing the vaccine, and if approved, the supply will increase, she said.

On the demand side, it depends on how many people are lined up for injections during the initial vaccination phase. With a large number of these priority groups, Hannan said it would take some time to move to the public phase.

“So far, there seems to be a high demand for healthcare professionals to be excited about getting the vaccine. They are lined up to get it. They get it. I’m posting a picture of ourselves, “she said.

Healthcare professionals do not want to put the dose around unused, so there are differences from state to state. For example, if a state’s priority group is more hesitant to get vaccinated, she says she may reach the general public sooner as the state moves to the next stage to take advantage of her doses. Said.

What power does the state have?

Vaccine providers have promised to follow the ACIP guidelines, but they can afford to provide flexibility to the state, Hannan said.

“The state provides its own guidance, and depending on where the vaccine is sent, the state decides who will be vaccinated first,” she said.

ACIP provides a “compass that everyone follows,” but the state has discretion over issues such as underlying conditions and essential workers. Depending on the situation, some states may choose to prioritize older people or long-term care facilities over health care workers.

In the 2009 swine flu pandemic, Toddler While many states focused on children and health care workers, especially because of the high risks, their numbers grew rapidly in other regions, allowing them to focus more quickly on the general public. Rhode Island was still managing vaccinations at school while Texas was distributing vaccines to pharmacies, Hannan said.

“The categories are large enough for the state to focus on or focus on a particular population,” she said.

Observers do not see significant state-to-state variability due to dose restrictions as they are today, but should become more apparent as vaccines become available.

Who makes the decision at the state level?

Ultimately, Hannan will call the governor about who will be vaccinated and when.

However, in most states, health and preparatory agencies have an advisory board or task force that provides recommendations to the governor. State authorities can also rely on ACIP guidance, the CDC has a playbook of jurisdiction, and the National County and Municipal Health Authority Association states that “strategies for delivering and administering the COVID-19 vaccine as quickly and efficiently as possible. Is shown in the outline.

“It’s hard for the governor to go too far,” Hannan said. “Hopefully it won’t be political.”

What if people try to cut the line?

California Concierge Medical Services Already Wealthy Residents Asking to pay thousands to skip the queue For Covid-19 vaccine. Governor Gavin Newsom has vowed to monitor the situation and ensure that ethical standards are maintained. Therefore, “people who have the means, those who are influential, do not crowd the people who deserve the vaccine most.”

According to Hannan, it’s a problem that each state has to deal with individually, but it’s not the most annoying concern in the grand planning of national vaccination campaigns.

On the one hand, she said, it is an indicator of high demand and means increased vaccine acceptance. Vaccinated people, on the other hand, do not need to confirm the identity, occupation, or medical history of everyone and need to worry. She said it was all a matter of balance.

“We don’t want to keep people away, and we don’t want the vaccine to sit around,” she said. “The state needs to deal with this situation when it happens, rather than letting people experience a lot of hoops … I don’t think it’s great, but more than people who don’t want vaccines. Rather, I want it. “