The first Americans will be vaccinated against Covid-19 today, but it will be months before everyday people get shot.


The first line will be two groups that are considered exceptionally high-risk – health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities such as nursing homes.

Residents of long-term care facilities have been particularly vulnerable, accounting for up to 40% of deaths from coronavirus in the U.S.

As cases increase across the country, it is crucial to protect the health of doctors and nurses. According to the CDC, more than 240,000 health care workers have been infected with the coronavirus and 900 have died.

But state health officials and governors across the country may not get enough vaccines in early shipments for top priority groups.
States must first prioritize who should be vaccinated. And the limited first shipment will eventually take effect when members of other groups below the line will roll up their sleeves, keeping the timetable full of uncertainty.

The required workers can be on the deck

Experts advising the CDC recommend that the next group – probably in January – take the vaccine, including essential workers such as emergency medical technicians and police officers. Also included are elderly adults living in gathering settings or crowded situations.
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The first phase of the four-stage vaccine rollout may include people of all ages with underlying conditions such as diabetes and kidney disease, who are considered to be at high risk of dying or becoming seriously ill from covid-1d.

It is possible that the U.S. Involved in the first phase of vaccination in March, the number of people involved is low. Any healthy and under-65 worker who is not required or at high risk should not be expected to be vaccinated until later.

The timetable for getting FDA approval will depend on the number of vaccines and when they happen – and, of course, how many doses are available. This vaccine requires two doses: one to make the body major, and then a few weeks later, another shot to speed up the reaction.

The CDC estimates that there are 21 million health care workers, 3 million long-term care residents, 87 million essential workers, 100 million adults with high-risk medical conditions and 53 million others aged 65 and over.

The federal government estimates that if both Pfizer / Bioentech and Moder vaccines are approved, 40 million doses of the vaccine will be available in the U.S. by the end of December. Can be found in

U.S. Department of Disease Control and Prevention Vaccine advisers at the centers on Saturday recommended that Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine be given to people 16 and older. The vaccine was released in the U.S. this week. Emergency use has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The next stage may involve teachers

Again, depending on whether more vaccines have been approved, the second phase could begin by April.

Phase 2 may include Kindergarten-12th grade teachers and staff and other child care workers, as well as other complex workers such as retail workers and transport workers. This group may include people from homeless shelters and all people over the age of 65 who were not included in the first phase.

The combined phase 1 and 2 will cover about 45% to 50% of the U.S. population, according to an independent committee to help policymakers properly allocate and distribute the coronavirus vaccine.

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the CDC, told the Senate in August that he did not think the general public would “at the end of the second quarter, the end of the third quarter, 2021.” Will be able to take the vaccine. April is the beginning of the second quarter of the year.

What about the rest of the population?

The rest of the population will have to wait months before putting on their sleeves for the vaccine.

Phase 3 carries the risk of an increase in workers and exposure to industries that require young adults, children, and community work who are not included in the first two phases. Phase 4 will involve each other.

So healthy adults and children under the age of 65 will have to wait until spring or summer, depending on how many vaccines are approved, how quickly they can be produced and distributed, and how to proceed with the allocation.

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Dr. Director of National Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Anthony Fawcett told CNN that “high-priority groups” are likely to be among those receiving the vaccine in the next four months.

“By the time you get there by April I’ll be projecting, in someone’s sense, to be an ‘open season’, ‘even high-priority groups can vaccinate,'” Foi said.

Pharmacy chains and large box stores are also gearing up to deliver the vaccine – including places where people usually get flu shots, grocery store pharmacies and physician offices.

CNN’s Ray Sanchez, Dakin Endone, Elizabeth Cohen, G’s Greer, Katie Hunt and Andrea Kane contributed to the report.

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