While Connecticut awaits a boost in COVID vaccines, local plans are being formed to rapidly vaccinate 160,000 teachers, school staff and childcare professionals across the state.
In a memo obtained by Hearst Connecticut Media, the state Department of Public Health this week instructed local health departments to prioritize this group and only offer vaccination clinics to the general public “if they support a specific goal of addressing equity. racial approach to vaccine launching, targeting vulnerable communities … or specifically addressing other issues of access for the elderly ”.
The memo indicated that most clinics will be held in late March due to the vaccine being supplied.
However, Governor Ned Lamont said on Thursday that the state is expected to receive 30,000 Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccines next week if they are approved in the coming days by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Lamont said the state has received about 100,000 weekly doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.
As Connecticut’s daily positivity rate dropped to 2.1 percent and COVID’s hospitalizations dropped to 485 on Thursday, Lamont said the “vast majority” of state school officials and child care professionals should receive their first dose of the vaccine in March.
Breaking federal guidance this week, Lamont announced a new vaccine plan that focuses on age groups, but offers an opportunity for those working in schools or day care centers to get priority starting on Monday.
Those who will be eligible in both categories include a wide range of staff, far beyond just classroom teachers and childcare workers. In schools, the list includes non-certified employees, such as educators, as well as custody and maintenance employees, as well as security guards and bus drivers. In daycare settings, the list includes administrative staff who regularly work personally with children and parents, as well as those who transport children.
In the DPH memo, local health directors were asked to complete a survey, asking whether they can commit to vaccinating school staff and child care professionals, the number of doses they will need and the maximum number of first doses they can administer each week in March.
“Not all health departments will need to serve as primary vaccinators – educational institutions and day care centers can work with hospitals or other vaccinators, or allow their employees to pass through clinics open to the public,” says the memo.
Maura Fitzgerald, a spokeswoman for DPH, said that each school district is working with its local health department to formulate a plan to vaccinate staff, teachers and caregivers of children.
“So the vaccination plan is going to be different from city to city and from district to district,” she said.
Fitzgerald said that DPH will ensure that each local health department or vaccination site “has a sufficient supply of vaccine to offer clinics throughout the month of March.”
Staff from private and parochial schools will also be eligible for the vaccine under the plan, according to the DPH. A spokeswoman for the Catholic school system in the Diocese of Bridgeport said employees were registered in January by the federal Vaccine Administration Management System. Some have already been vaccinated, while others are awaiting an appointment, the spokeswoman said.
As those aged 55 to 64, in addition to school officials and child care professionals, are expected to become eligible on Monday, essential frontline workers in the state and people with underlying medical conditions that put them at greater risk. risk of COVID complications continue to express frustration about being left behind.
An online petition, asking the state to prioritize these groups, had more than 600 signatures on Thursday night.
Members of the governor’s vaccine advisory group, including some who served on the allocation subcommittee charged with determining who should receive the vaccine first, also said they were surprised by Lamont’s decision to change the state’s vaccination priority.
Lamont said on Thursday that he tried to base the state’s implementation plan on the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but said the diseases on the list meant that about two-thirds of Connecticut’s population would be eligible at the same time.
The CDC’s guidance prioritizes essential workers and those with high-risk medical conditions after focusing on health professionals and those living in long-term care facilities.
Citing figures from the CDC, Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz said the state’s age-based approach indirectly targets those with these high-risk medical conditions. On Thursday, 19 more COVID-related deaths were reported, increasing the death toll in Connecticut to 7,614.
“Seventy-five percent of people who have comorbidities and health problems are people aged 55 and over,” said Bysiewicz. “If you vaccinate 55 or older, you will cover 75% of the population who have comorbidity problems.”
Disability Rights Connecticut filed a complaint with the United States Department of Health and Human Services, claiming that the state’s new vaccine plans “constitute discrimination by disability”. The complaint calls on the HHS Office of Civil Rights to order the state to “review its COVID-19 vaccine policy to include individuals with underlying medical conditions, regardless of their age, who are most at risk of COVID-19 infection” as a priority for the vaccine.
Lamont said he was “informed” of the process. But he said the complaint was directed at the wrong entity, citing the CDC list, which does not include people with intellectual or physical disabilities.
School and daycare staff who will be eligible fall into four main categories, but generally include only those who work in person. Education Council members are not included.
Here is the list from the state Department of Public Health:
Certified team
PK-12 classroom educators (including DSAP
Support Specialists for Students and Educators – Special Education, School Counselors, Social Workers, Speech Therapists, School Psychologists.
School Nurses
Building and central office administrators
Certified staff outside the classroom; Content coaches, department heads, curriculum experts, technology experts
Instructional team not certified
Educators
Tutors
Interventionists
Behavioral Experts
Support specialists hired – BCBA, speech
District / Building-based Substitutes
Education candidates serving as interns, tutors / substitutes / student teachers
Non-certified support team
Custody and maintenance personnel
Food service team
Office administration team (building and head office in schools)
Security Personnel
Auxiliary nurses and staff
Library / media center support staff (if not certified)
IT staff
Athletic coaches and extracurricular counselors (if not certified)
LEA bus / van drivers and private companies
Substitute teachers
Volunteers at school
Child care professionals
Child care teachers, assistant teachers, paraprofessionals
Administrative staff with personal contact with parents and children.
Program support team that maintains regular personal contact with children
Child care transport professionals
“Their real frustration should be with the CDC,” he said.