Gov. Kate Brown said on Friday she heard in a call to the White House this week that Oregon’s COVID-19 vaccine allocations would increase by 20% – a move that, according to the state’s top public health official, most elderly educators and health means. care workers will have the chance to be fully vaccinated earlier than expected in early May.
“This is really good news,” Brown said of the pending arrival of more doses during a live news conference.
The windfall comes as Oregon struggled to establish an accurate timeline for vaccinating the first waves of eligible vaccine recipients, and public health officials predict ‘chaos’ as seniors 80 years and older flood the vaccination system with their newfound fitness from Monday.
Brown did not provide details on the increase in vaccines, including when the additional doses would start arriving or in what numbers.
But Oregon Director of Health Patrick Allen said Oregon will receive 11,600 additional doses of Moderna vaccine per week, from a date he did not specify, plus an additional 12,000 doses per week from next week. pharmacies that plan to release the vaccines to the public through a federal program. Allen said Oregon’s weekly dose allocation will range from 52,000 to more than 75,000. This amounts to a total increase of 44%.
By early April, Allen said Oregon allows it to offer a first dose to about 75% of seniors over 65; day care, preschool and K-12 employees; prisoners; and Phase 1a members, including health workers and long-term caregivers. He said at the beginning of May about 75% would have had the opportunity to be completely vaccinated with second doses.
Three-quarters of the people who are vaccinated may approach the maximum that will be vaccinated against COVID-19. Allen said the state has done surveys that show that about 80% of Oregonians said they probably want to be vaccinated or are sure they do.
With most Oregonians in these early waves being vaccinated, Allen said the state plans to be eligible for new groups in early April – like other essential workers and people with underlying conditions. He said it is possible that the general population in Oregon could start shooting in the arm in July and that everyone who wants to be vaccinated will fall.
Allen has indicated that it is possible that the timeline may shorten – if Johnson & Johnson’s new vaccine or others in the factory get emergency clearance and start arriving in Oregon this spring.
Brown also confirmed Friday that she will immediately allow the process of vaccinating all inmates in Oregon. Not only does this include about 11,000 inmates in 14 state prisons, as a federal judge ordered earlier this week, but thousands of other inmates locked up in Oregon’s prisons and juveniles under 25 at the youth correctional facilities.
Both Brown and Allen called for strength, as the issuance of their age groups is greater: 75 and older from the week of 14, 70 and older February from the week of 21 and 65 February and older by about March.
“Next week, when seniors qualify, we’ll see some chaos,” Allen said. ‘Next week, many older adults will inevitably express frustration. Next week you do not have to look hard to see people experiencing confusion. We will fall short. ”
But, Allen adds, “we work hard to reduce the amount of chaos.”
Allen also said that Oregonians’ turn will finally come.
“I ask older Oregonians to be patient in exchange for this promise: although it will take time, every parent who wants to be vaccinated will get a vaccine in the coming weeks,” Allen said.
Brown said one of the techniques she hopes will ‘help avoid some of the nightmares we’ve seen in other states’ is to add seniors to seniors each week. She said it would not alleviate the problems.
“There will be a few more brackets in this process, but we will get it right,” Brown said.
Of the 52,500 first doses sent to Oregon by the federal government next week, the state will allocate 20,000 to seniors 80 and older. There are about 168,000 Oregonians in the age group, but according to the state, about 30,000 of them have already received at least one dose of vaccine, mainly because they were part of phase 1a. That leaves up to 138,000 remaining people in the age group competing for possibly 20,000 available doses next week.
The rest of the state’s weekly allocation of first doses will be divided as follows: 13,000 for phase 1a, 11,500 for educators, 5,000 for prisoners and 3,000 for tribes.
The governor noted that the state has done better than most to get first doses among the population of its population. It was the 12th place among states with 8.8% vaccinated with a first dose. Nationwide, 8.4% of Americans have received one dose so far.
The governor also said Oregon has successfully repelled infections than most places in the country, and has been the fourth-largest cause of coronavirus and per capita deaths in the U.S. since the start of the pandemic.
It is unclear whether elderly people in the age group of more than 80 people can get needle on Monday. The governor’s office said the state’s online vaccination tool – “Vaccinated Oregon” on covidvaccine.oregon.gov – would only be up and running on the same day.
Government officials say seniors can also call 2-1-1 for information. The governor said she was hiring 30 members of the National Guard to answer the line.
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– Aimee Green; [email protected]; @o_aimee