Amy Gamett, director of the clinical services department in eastern Idaho, is giving a vaccine against COVID-19 at Madison Memorial Hospital earlier this month. | Brittni Johnson, EastIdahoNews.com
BOISE (AP) – Idaho officials have announced a rough timeline for when residents can expect their turn to get the coronavirus vaccine.
The Department of Health and Welfare in Idaho on Monday released the timeline that expects it to take until the end of summer to vaccinate all adults who want the shot.
“The biggest thing we want people to realize is that the timeline is the best information we currently have,” department spokeswoman Niki Forbing-Orr said. “We will eventually reach everyone who wants a vaccine, but we really hope that everyone will be patient and follow the recommended guidelines in the meantime.”
State-wide guidelines limit the size of the group and encourage social distance and wearing masks if this is not possible.
Forbing-Orr said the state does not have estimates from federal authorities for more than two weeks of calculations on the amount of vaccine the state will receive, although the picture may become clearer in January.
“We will communicate changes as often as possible,” she said.
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She also said it is not clear how many residents in Idaho will refuse to get the vaccine, which could also change the timeline. Idaho tends to have a large number of residents wary of vaccinations.
“But we do our best to educate and encourage people to get the vaccine,” Forbing-Orr said.
The first lap round started this month and is being administered to healthcare workers and residents at long-term care facilities. Government officials estimate that there are 140,000 people in the category, and that nearly 12,000 of them received the first shot of the two-shot vaccine by Monday.
The second group, which numbers about 330,000, is expected to start receiving vaccinations in February.
The group consists of essential workers and adults 75 years and older. Experts believe that older adults are more susceptible to death or serious illnesses due to COVID-19.
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Major workers in the category include firefighters, police, schoolteachers, prison workers, members of the Idaho National Guard, food processors and workers at grocery stores and convenience stores.
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The second group also includes essential workers who are unable to count or distance themselves from others at work. The COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee in Idaho is still working on definitions of essential workers in this category, and will make recommendations to Republican Gov. Brad Little.
The third group, which numbers about 500,000, is expected to start vaccinating in April. This group consists of people aged 65 and older and people aged 16 to 64 who have medical conditions that put them at risk if they contract the virus.
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Essential workers in this group are defined as workers who were not included in the previous groups.
The final group, which counts 800,000, is simply defined as the general public. The vaccinations for the group are expected to begin in May.
State officials say about 137,000 residents are infected with the virus, and that nearly 1,400 have died.
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