COVID
Post date: Nov 02, 2020 7:18:51 PM
Teacher Vaccines
Beginning March 11th, all K-12 educators, child care workers and K-12 school staff will be eligible to schedule appointments for the COVID-19 vaccine. Educators may book appointments at all 170 sites currently open to eligible residents in Massachusetts by visiting www.mass.gov/covidvaccinemap.
Additionally, the Command Center will work to designate specific days at the seven mass vaccination sites for educators to get their shots. More details will be released soon.
There are approximately 400,000 K-12 educators, child care workers and K-12 school staff in Massachusetts. Due to a severely constrained federal supply and the existing population that is currently eligible for vaccines, it is estimated that it will take a month for all eligible individuals to secure a first appointment. This timeframe is only subject to change if federal supply increases dramatically, including the recently authorized Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Vaccine Appointments
This week, we anticipate over 250,000 doses will be administered between first and second doses across all providers throughout the Commonwealth.
On Thursday, March 4, 12,000 new first appointments for mass vaccination sites will be made available to eligible groups. Over 45,000 new second dose appointments have also been scheduled at mass vaccination sites.
The number of new appointments (first dose appointments) is less than previous weeks due to the volume of second dose appointments. 7,500 appointments have also been booked by the call center (211) for older adults who were unable to use a computer to book an appointment and required assistance.
As more individuals have received a first vaccine dose across the Commonwealth, there is a greater need to book second appointments, so the mass vaccination sites have fewer first dose appointments available on a weekly basis.
Later next week, a new Regional Collaboration will go live: the Lower Merrimack Valley regional collaboration, to include the City of Amesbury, Georgetown, Groveland, Merrimac, Newbury, Newburyport, Rowley, Salisbury and West Newbury. Details on this collaborative will be on the website at mass.gov/covidvaccinemap next week.
Johnson & Johnson Vaccine
The COVID-19 Command Center was notified that Massachusetts is receiving only one shipment of 58,000 doses for the month of March. These doses have been allocated – primarily to hospitals and health systems.
Based on information the Commonwealth has received from the federal government, the Administration does not expect to be able to order more J&J doses until the end of March or early April.
While the Commonwealth is receiving limited doses of the J&J vaccine in March, the Administration is continuing to plan for eventual widespread distribution of the J&J vaccine.
From Berkshire County Boards of Health from 3/5
A few COVID-19 Vaccination Updates:
The Berkshire Vaccine Collaborative is now providing Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Vaccine, as well as Moderna and Pfizer. Being willing to take any type of vaccine has allowed the Berkshires to receive more vaccine than we otherwise would have otherwise received. J&J is a one-shot regimen, instead of 2-doses like Moderna and Pfizer, which is logistically much simpler.
This week we got a large order of J&J, as well as much smaller amounts of Moderna & Pfizer. Several thousand appointments were filled yesterday, and additional appointments for early next week will open Saturday morning at 9:00 AM.
We continue to work with the Councils on Aging (COA) as well as limited non-profits to get those without Internet access appointments for vaccination. In addition, many grass-roots efforts have sprung up around the county to help neighbors score appointments.
Early childhood and K-12 school personnel will become eligible to receive vaccine in Massachusetts on Thursday March 11, 2021. A letter (attached) went out to the superintendents of the public schools this morning. Please feel free to share this letter with your private schools and day cares as well. Currently we are unsure if we will receive dedicated vaccine for teachers and other school personnel. If we do, the Berkshire Vaccine Team will hold a dedicated Saturday clinic for school personnel. If we do not, teachers and other school personnel will be eligible for appointments like other eligible groups. No on-site vaccination clinics will be held at the schools; whether the clinic is dedicated to school personnel or not all vaccinations will continue to be administered at the three large sites in North Adams, Great Barrington and Pittsfield.
Sorry about the long link, but for a lovely heartwarming story about the first COVID patient in MA receiving his vaccine at BCC yesterday please see: https://www.berkshireeagle.com/news/local/one-year-later-states-first-confirmed-case-of-covid-19-by-community-spread-gets-his/article_564b1d76-7d42-11eb-89fd-134301b6c729.html#utm_source=berkshireeagle.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletter%2Foptimize%2Fthebeat-for-the-eagle%2F%3F-dc%3D1614949212&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline.
Continue to direct your residents to www.getvaccinatedberkshires for the latest information. Any time new appointments are being released the time of release is posted on the website at least 6 hours (and usually 12-24) in advance. This gives residents advance warning of new appointments and means they do not have to constantly check the state website for Berkshire appointments.