Californians under 65 with disabilities or serious underlying health conditions could be eligible for the coronavirus vaccine from March 15, state officials said Friday, responding to outrage over a recent change aimed at speeding up the state’s slow vaccination.
California provided vaccines and prioritized people with high-risk medical conditions over healthy adults and certain essential workers over others, but at the end of January, the rate changed after the complexity of the system slowed the spread. Under the new system, the many categories were replaced by age levels.
But because people with chronic illnesses and disabilities were displaced by people aged 65 and older, the move caused widespread anger and confusion. Bay activists accuse government administration Gavin Newsom of abuse and criticize the governor on Twitter with the hashtag #HighRiskCA. California now joins a handful of states that are eligible for adults with mental or developmental disabilities or people with underlying health conditions.
The adaptation will extend Covid-19 vaccinations to people over the age of 16 who are weakened or under an immune system by cancer or an organ transplant. It will also include those who are pregnant or suffering from chronic lung disease, Down syndrome, sickle cell disease, heart disease, severe obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease that is stage 4 or higher, and those whose life or ongoing care includes . is otherwise likely threatened by Covid-19.
“I want the disability community to know, we’ve heard you, and we’re going to do more and better to provide access, even with the scarcity, of vaccines,” Governor Newsom said Friday during a visit to a mass vaccination center in San Francisco. Moscone Center.