Michigan is expanding vaccine admissions this month to include residents ages 50 to 64 and caregivers of people with disabilities.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the state has just over 2 million residents in that age group. About 13% have already been vaccinated because they have qualified their work as essential workers.
Michiganders 50 and older will soon be eligible for coronavirus vaccine
Groups that can currently be vaccinated across the country include health care workers, long-term care workers and residents, first responders, correctional workers, child care and school staff, staff in community care facilities, mortuary workers, food processing and agricultural workers, and residents 65 years and older.
This is what people need to know about enlargement.
From Monday 8 March, the suitability extends to the ages 50 to 64 with ‘existing conditions, disabilities and other medical vulnerabilities’.
This group gets a two-week lead on healthy people aged 50 to 64 years.
In the definition of ‘disability’, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services refers to the Americans with Disabilities Act, which covers persons with a physical or mental disability who ‘significantly restrict’ one or more important life activities, ‘such as eating, sleeping , stand, lift, read, bend, concentrate, think, communicate and work.
Existing conditions already exist that are eligible for vaccination from 8 March:
- Asthma;
- Cancer;
- Cerebrovascular disease;
- Chronic kidney disease;
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease;
- Cystic fibrosis;
- Pulmonary fibrosis;
- Down syndrome;
- Heart conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathy;
- High blood pressure;
- Weakened immune system due to transplantation, HIV or use of corticosteroids or other medicines that weaken the immune system;
- Liver disease;
- Neurological conditions such as dementia;
- Obesity or overweight, defined as body mass index older than 25;
- Sickle cell disease;
- Roker;
- Type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus;
- Thalassemia.
2. From 8 March, caregivers of the disabled will also be eligible for vaccination.
Caregivers and family members aged 16 and older of children with special health care needs can be vaccinated from Monday.
Special health care needs include “any physical, developmental, mental, sensory, behavioral, cognitive, or emotional impairment or limiting condition that requires medical management, health care intervention, and / or use of specialized services or programs,” according to MDHHS. “The condition can be congenital, developmental or due to illness, trauma or environmental causes and can result in limitations in performing daily self-maintenance activities or significant limitations in an important life activity.”
3. The proof of admission may vary depending on the vaccine provider.
MDHHS does not specify what documentation is required for those aged 50 to 64 with pre-existing conditions and those caring for children with special needs. It depends on the vaccine provider.
“We will need proof. We hear that most places need some form of proof, ”said John Foren, a spokesman for Sparrow Health in Lansing.
Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids said they would rely on information provided on people’s registration forms. “We ask everyone to provide complete and accurate information on any underlying medical conditions they may or may not be eligible for at this stage,” reads a statement from Spectrum Health.
On 22 March, all residents aged 50 and over will be eligible for a vaccine.
From Monday 22 March, anyone aged 50 or over will be eligible for a vaccine, and vaccinations will also continue for those who have previously been eligible.
Consent, however, does not guarantee immediate access: at this stage, the demand for vaccines remains better than the supply. However, President Biden has stated that by the end of May, the United States will be producing enough vaccine for all adults.
Michigan opens up vaccines to more people, but frustration increases for those still struggling to book appointments
5. Sign up for an appointment.
Individuals eligible for a vaccine are encouraged to enroll on their waiting lists at their local health department as well as their local hospitals. Meijer and Rite-Aid pharmacies and Cardinal Health in the Upper Peninsula also offer vaccinations.
Here is a link to contact information for local health departments, as well as links to the Meijer and Rite-Aid websites.
Residents who do not have access to the Internet or need help planning the vaccination can call the COVID-19 hotline at 888-535-6136 (press 1) Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 08 : 00. until 13:00
6. COVID-19 vaccinations are provided free of charge to patients.
“No fee will be charged for the vaccine, whether you have health insurance coverage or not,” MDHHS said on its website. “If you do have insurance cover, the vaccine provider can charge you administration fees from your insurance, but you do not have to pay anything. (If you are not insured, this fee will come from the Provider Assistance Fund of the Health Resources and Services Administration, NOT you.)
7. People cannot choose which of the three vaccines they will receive.
“Although stocks are scarce, it is unlikely that you will be able to choose which vaccine you receive from your medical provider,” the MDHHS website says. ‘You must not wait; you must take which vaccine is available to you. CDC does not prioritize one vaccine over another. ‘
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses. If you are receiving the Pfizer vaccine, the second dose should be 21 days after the first dose, and the second dose of Moderna vaccine should be 28 days after the first dose. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires only one dose to build the best immune response.
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