If there is an effective vaccine for coronavirus, experts say it will probably not be enough for all Americans right off the bat.
To help determine who should receive the first batch of doses, the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security has released a framework for distributing vaccines, reports The Baltimore Sun.
According to the report, which is called an ‘ethics cream’, the first people to be vaccinated are healthcare professionals who are essential for fighting coronavirus.
Experts from Johns Hopkins say that people who are most at risk of serious illness such as seniors and their carers, such as teachers and food and transit workers should receive initial faxes.
Researchers noted that determining who delivers early is a “difficult and potentially controversial” topic.
The report is not a direct recommendation, according to the newspaper. It just deals with priority groups and not the total population.
The report draws attention to essential workers and groups that may have been overlooked in previous pandemic planning efforts. It also works to control racial and ethnic differences, reports The Baltimore Sun.
Contributors to the report said they considered medical risks, public health, ethics and equity, economic impact and logistics when determining the framework. They also said they looked to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s pandemic flu vaccine counseling.
According to the report, there will probably not even be enough faxes for the people who marked them in the first tier.
They noted that people in that group should be given priority. They suggested that this could be done by considering the ability of people to protect themselves, their age and the importance of their jobs.
Researchers place general health, pharmacy workers and those who have access to second-tier care for vaccination. The second tier also includes people working in public water and sanitation systems and other essential services such as police and military. That group also includes those who have to work and cannot distance themselves and those who live in shelters or prisons.
The report notes that as more information is learned the framework may change.
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