5 Major Developments in Vaccination Program

5 Major Developments in Vaccination Program

There are major developments that are now emerging in Rhode Island and across the country that will determine the ability to move towards a level of community immunity.

1) Eligibility in Rhode Island expands to 16 and Over Today

Starting today in Rhode Island, those aged 16 and older can sign up for scheduling for vaccination for the coronavirus.

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Rhode Island’s vaccination program has gotten at least one shot into the arms of 470,000 Rhode Islanders.

Rhode Islanders can sign up at https://www.vaccinateri.org/

 

 

2) Dr. Fauci’s Prediction on the Johnson & Johnson Vaccine

Dr. Anthony Fauci — senior health advisor to President Joseph Biden — is predicting that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine’s “pause” will be lifted this coming week.

“I think by that time we’re going to have a decision,” Dr. Fauci said on Sunday on the CNN program “State of the Union.”

“I don’t want to get ahead of the CDC, and the FDA, and the advisory committee,” he added. He expected experts to recommend “some sort of either warning or restriction” on the use of the vaccine.

 

 

3) Physicians Mistreating Blood Clotting

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that one of the reasons federal public health experts opted to pause Johnson & Johnson was due to fear about the mistreatment of patients.

"U.S. health authorities came close to simply warning about a blood-clotting risk from Johnson & Johnson’s JNJ 1.15% Covid-19 vaccine, but decided to recommend pausing use out of concern doctors would improperly treat the condition, people familiar with the matter said," reports the WSJ.

A week ago, the FDA and CDC jointly announced the "pause" in the administration of the vaccine.

“COVID-19 vaccine safety is a top priority for the federal government, and we take all reports of health problems following COVID-19 vaccination very seriously,” the FDA said in a joint statement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“People who have received the J&J vaccine who develop severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination should contact their health care provider,” the FDA and CDC said.

"Over the previous four weeks, American health officials had become alarmed about similar blood-clotting conditions in Europe involving a Covid-19 vaccine from AstraZeneca AZN -0.18% PLC, the people said. The officials dug into a U.S. vaccine-safety database and identified the cases of great concern, but debated what action to take," according to the WSJ.

 

 

4. MA Expands -- 16+ Are Eligible for Vaccine Monday

The Baker-Polito Administration reminded the public on Monday that all individuals 16 and older are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, April 19. 

Individuals 16 and older will be eligible to receive vaccine at any of the Commonwealth’s over 300 public vaccination locations. With this group, 1.7 million additional residents will be eligible for vaccine in the Commonwealth.

Individuals seeking appointments at mass vaccination sites are able to preregister for vaccine appointments at mass.gov/COVIDVaccine. Several regional collaboratives are also on the preregistration system including: Amherst, Marshfield, Northborough, Northampton, Palmer and West Springfield.

An individual who preregisters can still seek appointments at other sites including pharmacies, community health centers and their healthcare provider.

Due to the limited supply of vaccines from the federal government, individuals seeking appointments should anticipate that it may take several for people to get an appointment. To learn more about the Commonwealth’s vaccination sites and pre-registration visit Mass.gov/COVIDVaccine.

Over the weekend, the Commonwealth hit the milestone of having over 2 million residents fully vaccinated. Over 3 million first doses have been administered.

 

 

5. Dr. Fine Warns Vaccination Sign Ups May be Waning

Former RI Director of Health Dr. Michael Fine says that there are early indications that the interest in getting vaccinated is waning -- Rhode Island has yet to vaccinate 50% of the population.

Dr. Fauci says that 85% of the population needs to be vaccinated in order to achieve "herd immunity."

Achieving a critical level of community protection may be complicated by the variants. Both Moderna and Pfizer have stated that booster vaccinations will be needed on an annual basis.

SEE FULL INTERVIEW with Dr. Fine Below