As of Monday, March 15, people over 50 are eligible for a vaccine under the 1C phase of the state.
The expert panel for vaccination followed a different approach to indicating the vaccine, by age and not occupation.
According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, more than 93% of the deaths in the state caused directly by the coronavirus are people 50 years of age and older. In addition, Texans between the ages of 50 and 64 are responsible for 20% of all COVID-19 deaths.
As of Wednesday, 44,650 deaths due to COVID-19 have been counted in Texas.
“The state of Texas has a different strategy than the CDC based on data from Texas,” said Dr. David Lakey, a panelist, explains. “The data from Texas was very clear. The biggest risk factor for being admitted to hospital or dying from COVID was not your occupation, but your age, so we tried to get people aged 65 and older first. vaccination. Now 50 and older have been vaccinated. “
SEE MORE: Track COVID-19 Vaccine Availability and Progress in Houston
The new grouping leaves out thousands of workers from grocery stores, post offices and restaurants as well as bus drivers, many of whom protested in Austin to be included. The panel said they do not want to give preference to the use of the data to prove that it has a higher risk.
Representatives of the union told ABC13 earlier this week that they feel they are being strangled.
“We feel we are essential workers, but respond to the first one. We need to be included. There is no reason we should not be vaccinated,” said Fidel Minor, a longtime bus manager at METRO and vice president of TWU Local 260, said. 2,000 members. “We have a lot of exposure to the public.”
The Expert Vaccine Allocation Panel, which makes the recommendations, has 17 members across the country.
The 1C group consists of about five million people. Lakey said about one million people in the group fall under 1A or 1B.
Just a week earlier, DSHS had targeted the state’s vaccine providers vaccinate teachers and childcare workers immediately following a guideline of federal level.
Nearly 4.7 million Texans have at least one dose of the vaccine.
SEE ALSO: Leaders of Texas Medical Center talk about vaccinating COVID-19
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