Delaware Begins Vaccine For People Aged 50 and Older, And Young People With Health Issues
This article originally written by Digital Content Intern Yusra Asif. Asif, is a senior media communications major at the University of Delaware, working as the associate news editor at The Review and a broadcast news reporter at the Student Television Network at UD.
Delaware has announced that people aged 50 and above are eligible to receive the vaccine as of Wednesday, March 17, as it enters into its next phase of vaccination. Appointments can be made at local pharmacies.
The vaccination waiting list vaccinerequest.delaware.gov will open on March 23 for those 50 and older.
Young Delawareans aged 16 and above, with high-to-moderate risk medical conditions and caregivers will also be able to receive the vaccine at their local health care providers. Division of Public Health (DPH) has also encouraged providers to contact their highest risk patients directly to schedule vaccination appointments.
“Our vaccine supply has significantly increased, and as the number of seniors who are requesting vaccination appointments continues to drop, we are in a position to make them available to more Delawareans,” Dr. Karyl Rattay, Division of Public Health Director, said in a statement. “So we are making a strong push through the end of March to vaccinate the remaining seniors 65+ and frontline essential workers who want a vaccine, and are excited to be able to begin reaching other vulnerable Delawareans.”
According to the state of Delaware’s new vaccination guidelines, Delaware health care providers, including hospitals, “should use their clinical judgement to vaccinate individuals 16-64 with underlying health conditions.”
The move comes after President Joe Biden announced his plan to make all adult Americans eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine by May 1.
Over the next several weeks the state of Delaware will continue to focus on vaccinating Delawareans who are 65 and above, and registered on the state’s waiting list. Those who are 65+ and not currently registered to get vaccinated can register at vaccinerequest.delaware.gov.
Based on the state’s website, about 12% of Delaware’s population is fully vaccinated and 20% of the population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
According to the press release, Delaware also plans to vaccinate the front-line workers in phase 1B, and will be moving into vaccinating other essential workers after that. Employers can contact the DPH at vaccineplanning@delaware.gov to schedule vaccination appointments for their employees.
We are expanding Delaware's COVID-19 vaccination program.
— Governor John Carney (@JohnCarneyDE) March 16, 2021
This is an important step forward that will make thousands of high-risk Delaware adults eligible for this life-saving COVID-19 vaccine.
Read the announcement: https://t.co/xrZrieqMtN pic.twitter.com/cB7roMR26y
