Massachusetts will launch schedule for remaining groups at vaccine launch

If you are not yet eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in Massachusetts, you are about to find out when it will be.

Governor Charlie Baker tweeted on Tuesday night that his government will launch a schedule on Wednesday morning for when all remaining groups at the state’s vaccine launch will be eligible to register for a consultation.

“Each resident will know when they will be eligible for a vaccine,” said Baker.

Tomorrow morning, our administration will release the schedule to all remaining groups in the MA vaccine plan. Each resident will know when they will be eligible for a vaccine.

Thank you for making MA a national leader in the vaccination effort!

– Charlie Baker (@MassGovernor) March 16, 2021

Baker’s tweet came after authorities in neighboring Connecticut announced on Monday that the state would accelerate its rollout to make all residents over the age of 16 eligible for a vaccine appointment starting April 5, after being informed by the federal government to anticipate a significant increase in vaccine supply in the coming weeks.

President Joe Biden declared last week that all adults in the United States must be eligible to be vaccinated by May 1. And although Biden said that does not mean that everyone will be able to guarantee an immediate consultation, he also promised to increase the vaccine supply to have enough doses for all American adults by the end of May.

Massachusetts is currently in the middle of Phase 2 of the state’s three-phase rollout. Residents over 65, individuals with various qualifying health conditions, and employees of elementary and high schools and day care centers are eligible to receive a vaccine, in addition to more targeted Phase 1 groups.

The implementation has yet to expand to the final two groups of Phase 2: certain workers who are likely to be exposed to COVID-19 and individuals with a qualified medical condition. As the plan was first outlined in December, officials said that Phase 3, when eligibility will be open to the rest of the general public, will begin in April.

Last week, after pressure from lawmakers, the Baker administration launched a vaccine pre-registration system that allows residents to provide basic information and receive notification when an appointment is available to them.