Initial shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine have been received by the Henry and Stark County Health Department and the Henry County Office of Emergency Management (OEM). | Unsplash
Initial shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine have been received by the Henry and Stark County Health Department and the Henry County Office of Emergency Management (OEM). | Unsplash
Initial shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine have been received by the Henry and Stark County Health Department and the Henry County Office of Emergency Management (OEM).
Right now, the health department and the OEM will be following state guidance on who to distribute the vaccine to, according to a press release from the Henry and Stark County Health Department.
"Tier 1a recipients include health care workers and long-term care residents. In accordance with the federal guidance the first to receive Covid-19 vaccinations were hospital and inpatient hospital workers at the County’s two Hospitals: Hammond-Henry Hospital, Geneseo and St. Luke’s Medical Center, Kewanee. The vaccine supplies were divided between the 2 hospitals; as well as, to the Health Department and the Office of Emergency Management for further distribution to area providers and clinicians and their staffs," the department wrote in the press release.
The state has also advised that long-term and nursing facilities join the Federal Vaccine Program. Pharmacies that are part of the program will register residents and staff then distribute the vaccine.
“Tier 1b recipients will be the next phase of distribution. This distribution will be based on continued receipt of vaccine shipments. Tier 1b recipients may include essential frontline workers such as courthouse and highway employees, education sector employees, utilities and transportation professionals," Sandy Sommer, RN clinical services director with the department, said in the press release. “The first public Covid-19 vaccine recipients would begin in the next phase to Tier 1c. These recipients would include adults with high risk medical conditions and adults over the age of 65. The public will be alerted immediately as soon as any community clinics are scheduled and planned for Tier 1c participants. Simple instructions and information will then be announced so that the vaccine will able to get to the public in an orderly and proper manner. At present there is “NO WAITING LIST” or “Pre-registration List” for Tier 1c recipients; so please do not call the OEM or Health Department as our staff is needed to work on the continued distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine to our area residents in the federally mandated manner.”
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