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Christine Ferretti
| The Detroit News
Michigan will begin distributing the vaccine to certain federally qualified health centers to ensure that those most at risk of serious COVID-19 complications – racial or ethnic minorities, or people with lower incomes or disabilities – are prioritized for vaccines.
The new program will also prioritize vaccination of mortuary workers and, as of March 1, about 79,000 workers in food processing and agriculture.
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The 41 federally qualified health centers eligible under the new strategy will help vaccinate people over 65 who are in medically underserved areas. Separately, health care providers with specific plans to remove socioeconomic barriers to the vaccine will be allowed to request the vaccine for people over 60.
The new populations and administrators prioritized for vaccine distribution advance the state’s goals for equity in vaccine administration and a vaccination rate of 70% among those over 16, said medical director Dr. Joneigh Khaldun.
“Workers in high-risk agricultural environments have been adversely impacted by this pandemic,” said Khaldun in a statement on Monday. “We also know that we need to remove barriers to accessing the vaccine for our most vulnerable individuals in Michigan, including those with income disabilities and racial and ethnic minorities. “
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Lynn Sutfin said the policy change was not responsible for Beaumont Health’s cancellation of nearly 2,000 consultations this week for people waiting for their second dose on Monday. of the vaccine COVID-19, when the health center said it received less vaccine than expected from the state.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said on Monday that the city would detail its plan under the expanded eligibility strategy in the coming days.
Detroit received 15,000 weekly doses of the vaccine on Monday, but the mayor expects distribution to increase next month.
“Hopefully, we will exceed 15,000 before that,” said Duggan. “But if you talk to county executives in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb, they would like more too. Everyone is looking after their own constituents as they should. We are the ones who prove that we are doing 15,000 a week without breaking a sweat.”
In the first phase of vaccine distribution, the vaccine was widely available to hospitals and local health departments to target health workers and workers and residents of long-term care facilities.
Whitmer expanded the eligibility criteria in the week of January 11 for those over 65 and some critical employees, such as teachers, in an attempt to reopen face-to-face learning.
Deployment was largely hampered by limited supply of the vaccine, while states across the country await their turn for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.