State and local health officials are working on a plan to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine to millions of newly eligible people. Exactly how a person can get the vaccine will depend on systems created on the local level.
The state will announce on Tuesday a limited amount of providers that will be eligible to give the vaccine, then every local emergency management agency will announce details for vaccine administration.
That means how to sign up, how to participate, and where to receive the shot will all vary among counties and providers.
Gov. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) says several types of providers can administer the vaccine including, physicians, hospitals, in-home service providers, retail pharmacies, and Federally Qualified Health Centers.
A lot can depend on decisions made on the local level such as if a sign-up process is be created or providers might host walk-in clinics.
DeWine says the next eligible group, known as 1B, is about 2.2 million people and the next shipment will only be about 100,000 doses of the vaccine.
"It'll take a number of weeks to distribute all the vaccine. Given the limited doses available, we hope that the number of vaccines coming into Ohio will increase," says DeWine.
Group 1B includes people over the age of 65, those with certain health conditions, and teachers and staff working at K-12 schools.
Here's the tentative timeline for distribution by eligibility:
- January 19 - 80 years and older
- January 25 - 75 years and older; and People with severe congenital, developmental, or early onset medical disorders
- February 1 - 70 years and older; and school sign-ups begin
- February 8 - 65 years and older
School districts that wish to distribute the vaccine among its teachers and staff can submit a request to the state with the condition that it opens up to in-person instruction in March.
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