Cuomo unveils plan for rolling out COVID vaccine when available
"We don't know how many doses we're going to get. We don't know what vaccine we're going to get. We don't know when we're going to get it," NY Gov. Cuomo said on Sunday.
By IDAN ZONSHINEAn individual dose of the filled SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate made by biotech company IDT Biologika in Dessau-Rosslau, Germany. June 24, 2020(photo credit: HARTMUT BOESENER/IDT BIOLOGIKA/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced that the New York State Department of Health has released a draft COVID-19 vaccination administration program that serves as an initial framework for ensuring the safe and effective distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine in New York.While the world's nations have been working together to develop a working vaccine (or, more likely, several different vaccines) for COVID-19, another massive-scale operation is still needed to manufacture, distribute and vaccinate the population.As vaccines begin completing their trial phases and a working vaccine seems closer every day, the question moves away from "when will a vaccine be ready?" to "when will I be able to get a vaccine myself, and who gets it first?"The plan prioritizes based on two variables: level of risk/comorbidities and occupational hazards. Based on that, there would be five priority groups, who would get the vaccine in this order:1. High-risk populations and essential healthcare workers in a location with high COVID-19 prevalence: Healthcare workers (clinical and non-clinical) in patient care settings, people who work in intensive care units and in ambulance corps, long-term care facility workers who regularly interact with residents and the most at-risk long-term care facility patients.2. High-risk populations and essential healthcare workers in a location with low COVID-19 prevalence: First responders (fire, police, national guard), teachers/school staff who work in-person, childcare providers, public health workers, other essential frontline workers that regularly interact with public (pharmacists, grocery store workers, transit employees, etc.) or maintain critical infrastructure. other long-term care facility patients and those living in other congregate settings, Individuals in the general population deemed particularly high risk due to comorbidities and health conditions.3. Lower-risk populations and other essential workers in a location with high COVID-19 prevalence: Individuals over 65 and individuals under 65 with high-risk.4. Lower-risk populations and other essential workers in a location with low COVID-19 prevalence: All other essential workers.5. General population in a location with high COVID-19 prevalence: Healthy adults and children.6. General population in a location with low COVID-19 prevalence: Healthy adults and children.Cuomo noted the plan is likely to change as transmissions continue and the vaccine is rolled out.He also warned today that administering any vaccine could prove the toughest challenge yet, saying that "We are coming up with a plan on many presumptions. We don't know how many doses we're going to get. We don't know what vaccine we're going to get. We don't know when we're going to get it. The state will have a statewide vaccination plan. We will do it in concert with the federal government. The federal government is in charge of producing the actual vaccine and distributing the vaccines.""States cannot do this on their own,” he said. “Period. This is a massive undertaking. This is a larger operational undertaking than anything we have done under COVID to date. This is a more complicated undertaking and task. And we need the federal government to be a competent partner with this state and with every state.”
