New group of Virgos may receive the vaccine COVID-19 from Monday

BLACKSBURG, Va. – The next phase of the COVID-19 vaccination in Virginia is coming.

Starting on Monday, parts of the community will move to Phase 1B of their vaccination plan. This opens the COVID-19 vaccine to people over 75 and workers in essential high-contact professions, including:

• Rescuers, including police, fire and hazardous material workers
• Workers in correctional facilities or homeless shelters
• Children’s teachers and assistants
• Food and agriculture officials
• Grocery store workers
• Public transport employees
• Courier carriers, which includes the United States Postal Service and private courier services

“We want to be efficient and have large-scale vaccination numbers,” said New River Valley health director, Dr. Noelle Bissell. “There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but it is a long tunnel, so don’t get excited yet.”

While the list of people who can receive the COVID-19 vaccine is relatively exclusive, Bissell hopes to open it to everyone as soon as possible.

“Our goal is hopefully in late spring, we will be able to vaccinate everyone, or at least in the summer,” said Bissell. “This is a real-time thing; it’s amazing that the vaccine is being released so quickly. “

The new vaccinations come amid an outbreak of COVID-19 cases in Virginia. The state recorded more than 5,000 cases per day in the past five days, including a record of 5,789 cases on Saturday.

“The vaccine is more important than ever now,” said Bissell. “If we can stop the transmission, we will see an end to the pandemic.”

More information about the New River Valley vaccination plan is available at this link.