Alaska has embarked on its efforts to distribute doses of the COVID-19 vaccine this month, but only a fraction of people in the state have received it so far.
At various levels and stages, much about who will receive the vaccine – and when – is still being determined, and the status remains in the early stages of distribution, as the number of vaccine doses available is limited.
As of Friday, Alaska had administered about 11,800 first doses of the vaccine from manufacturers Moderna and Pfizer. In total, the state has about 60,000 doses of the vaccine available for the month of December, but the number of vaccines available for January is still unclear, officials said on a phone call on Wednesday.
Here’s what to expect going forward.
The initial stage of vaccination is known as Phase 1A and, in Alaska, is subdivided into three distinct levels.
The first two layers included those who started receiving the vaccine this month. They included residents and staff at long-term care facilities, hospital-based frontline health professionals, emergency personnel, community health workers and people who are doing the vaccination.
The third tier of people in the state’s first phase will begin receiving vaccines next month. Based on the recommendations of a state allocation committee, the third level includes people working in healthcare settings who are at the greatest risk of contracting COVID-19 and are also considered essential to the healthcare system, performing regular work that they cannot be delayed or done remotely.
They must also meet the following criteria, listed by the state:
• Having direct contact with the patient or having direct contact with patients’ infectious materials; and
• Provide essential services in a healthcare environment that cannot be offered remotely or carried out via telework; and
• Providing a service in a health setting that cannot be postponed without detrimental impact on the patient’s short or long term health outcomes.
Those who fall into this category can start signing up to receive the vaccine on Wednesday, officials said last week. Vaccinations will be by appointment only and will occur on a first-come, first-served basis, said Tari O’Connor of the state health department. Vaccines will be available at clinics across the state and their locations will be posted online this week. The clinics include community health centers, hospitals and pharmacies across the state.
The federal advisory committee recommended the inclusion of people over 74 and essential workers as part of Phase 1B, while Phase 1C would include people aged 65 to 74, as well as those aged 16 to 64 with high-risk medical conditions and other essential workers who were not included during Phase 1B.
Phases 1B and 1C include a significant number of people – far more than the number of vaccine doses available, said Tessa Walker Linderman, who heads the state’s vaccination task force, last week. This is where the state committee will be useful in determining who specifically should be next in line. While the federal committee issues broader guidelines, the Alaskan committee divides them into smaller groups.
Those interested in providing information on how vaccines should be distributed in Alaska can do so on Monday during a public meeting scheduled for 4 pm to 5 pm. You can send written comments in advance or sign up to provide a 1 minute comment during the meeting.