Smokers in Massachusetts could get the COVID-19 vaccine as early as next month.
An adjustment to the state’s priority order considered residents with multiple health conditions to be at high risk for COVID-19, after the first group was able to receive the vaccine during phase 2, which would be more than a million vaccines spread. Smoking – along with obesity and type 2 diabetes – is one of dozens of conditions that are considered to be an increased risk for serious diseases due to COVID.
Massachusetts is one of a half-dozen states in the state that prioritize smokers in vaccination plans, including one state that eligible smokers immediately this month.
In the coronavirus vaccine deployment plan announced by Massachusetts health officials in December, priority for the vaccine was given to high-risk residents because of their occupation, housing and health.
The first to receive the vaccine were healthcare professionals who provided direct care to COVID patients. This includes not only doctors and nurses in hospitals, but also other support staff in the healthcare system who come into direct contact with COVID patients.
Next health workers in the front line were residents and staff in long-term care facilities, rest homes and relief facilities where COVID claimed the lives of many.
Tens of thousands of medical providers of emergency medical services, police and firefighters are the third priority to receive the vaccine, which began in Massachusetts last week.
Residents and staff in group homes, substance abuse treatment programs and emergency shelters, as well as inmates, will receive the vaccination from Monday.
Massachusetts will enter Phase 2 of the vaccine distribution plan in February. In Phase 2, residents with at least two health conditions that make them at high risk for COVID-19 complications, elderly people 75 years and older and residents and staff with low incomes and affordable senior housing, are prioritized to receive the vaccine first.
For the high-risk conditions, which a resident is eligible for receiving the vaccine, state health officials include a list of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC’s list contains a dozen conditions that put adults of any age at increased risk for serious COVID-19 diseases:
- Cancer
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Down syndrome
- Heart conditions, such as heart failure or coronary artery disease
- Immuno-compromised state due to organ transplantation
- Obesity (body mass index [BMI] of 30 kg / m2 or higher, but <40 kg / m2)
- Severe obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg / m2)
- Pregnancy
- Sickle cell disease
- Smoke
- Type 2 diabetes mellitus
This group will be followed by teachers, transit operators and workers in grocery stores, including industries essential during the pandemic.
“Being a current or former cigarette smoker increases your risk of serious illness due to COVID-19,” says the CDC. Federal health officials do not distinguish between cigarettes and e-cigarettes, which have become increasingly popular in recent years.
The list of underlying conditions has been updated throughout the pandemic to reflect recent studies indicating which health problems threaten an individual more.
Such updates have led some health officials to change their vaccine distribution plans.
The New Jersey government, Phil Murphy, announced Wednesday that an estimated 2 million smokers in the state are immediately eligible for the vaccine, in addition to the elderly and residents with a pre-existing condition.
In response to criticism, Murphy called it a ‘cheap chance’ on Friday that some claim smokers are jumping the line.
Other states include smokers in COVID vaccination plans. As in New Jersey, smokers in Mississippi can get the vaccine earlier. In Alaska, Maine and North Carolina, smokers are included in later stages.
Smoking rates have dropped significantly over the past year. About 30 years ago, about 24% of Massachusetts residents reported smoking daily or some days. In 2019, 12% identified as smokers – about 4% lower than the national average.
Government Charlie Baker was asked on Wednesday about possible changes to the state’s implementation following new clues issued this week by federal health officials.
‘I know it’s not popular, but I really hope we are able to hit the population with the available vaccine early on for whom life has been most at risk, and for whom the health care system relies and is dependent on care. offers, ”Baker said.
Massachusetts is expected to enter Phase 3 vaccination phase in April, when the general public is expected to be eligible. By the summer of 2021, the majority of residents should have access to the vaccine.
About 80% of the state’s population is expected to be vaccinated, with the remaining 20% including children under the age of 14, adults who are not safe being vaccinated and those who choose not to get the vaccine.
“It is our explicit goal that everyone who is medically eligible should receive the vaccine,” said Dr. Paul Biddinger, head of emergency preparedness at Massachusetts General Hospital and director of the Mass. General’s Center for Disaster Medicine, during a press conference said three-phase plan. Biddinger serves as chairman of the Massachusetts COVID-19 Advisory Group, which helped determine vaccine grant and distribution plans.
COVID-19 vaccines are offered free of charge by federal health officials. Insurance companies have pledged not to charge fees or co-payments in connection with the vaccine and vaccine clinics.
As it gets easier in the coming months, public vaccine clinics will appear on the CDC’s website vaccinefinder.org.
In addition to hospitals, the vaccine will also be available at major clinics. Baker announced Tuesday that Gillette Stadium will serve as the state’s first large-scale facility.
The clinic will be open Monday for initial reactions to the vaccine.
Baker said Tuesday that the facility will begin offering 300 vaccines a day, delivering 5,000 daily, followed by “potentially much larger numbers.”
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