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The ministers have confirmed that those over 65 and in long-term care, frontline healthcare workers in direct contact with patients and those over 70 will be the first to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.
The Cabinet this morning considered broader categories for inclusion in the vaccination program and, according to a list released this afternoon, these initial cohorts will be followed by other healthcare workers and then by those aged 65 to 69 with medical conditions.
Healthcare workers who are not in direct contact with patients, as well as those over 65 with medical conditions that put them at risk for serious illness, are among the following prioritized for vaccination, once categories are vaccinated more urgent.
Next, “key workers” will be vaccinated, although this category will be further refined, according to the government’s list.
It will include those who “provide essential services for economic and social activity.”
The next category will be people ages 18 to 64 with conditions that put them at higher risk for disease, followed by residents of long-term care facilities in this age cohort.
Once those groups are vaccinated, the focus will shift to 18-64 year-olds living in overcrowded housing where self-isolation and social distancing is difficult to maintain, then key workers in essential jobs who “cannot avoid high risk of exposition”. including workers in the food supply system, as well as the commercial and public transportation sectors.
The next category will be those who are essential to education and face exposure to disease, such as elementary and middle school staff, child care workers, and school bus drivers.
Then those between 55 and 64 years old will be vaccinated, followed by those in occupations “important to the functioning of society,” for example, those who work in tertiary institutions, entertainment, and other industries where protective measures can be followed without much difficulty.
Then there will be young people between 18 and 54 years old, who did not have access to the vaccine in previous phases, before children, adolescents up to 18 years of age and pregnant women are finally vaccinated, “if the evidence shows safety and efficacy.”
Government sources have indicated that the list is a “living document” and may be subject to change based on the efficacy of different vaccines among different groups in the general population.
It has not been decided if each immunization will be completed in each group before the program moves on to the next, or if there may be any overlap.
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