Texas says elderly and at-risk will get Covid vaccine before essential workers

Texas announced on Monday it will prioritise seniors and those with serious pre-existing conditions to get the next round of the state’s coronavirus vaccines after frontline health workers, highlighting the complicated decisions facing states and localities as they begin to administer the vaccine.

“The focus on people who are age 65 and older or who have comorbidities will protect the most vulnerable populations,” said Imelda Garcia, chair of the state’s vaccine allocation advisory panel, in a statement. “This approach ensures that Texans at the most severe risk from Covid-19 can be protected across races and ethnicities and regardless of where they work.”

Elderly people make up more than 70 per cent of the state’s Covid deaths, the Texas Department of State Health Services noted in announcing the decision. Those with heightened medical risk factors for Covid like cancer, chronic kidney disease, heart conditions, or pregnancy will also get priority access.

The state is currently hoping to vaccinate 1 million people by the end of the year at 109 different hospitals, and expects to spend the next few weeks vaccinating the 1.9 million Texans in the state’s top access tier, which includes long-term care facility residents and frontline health workers.

Greg Abbott, the state’s Republican governor, said last week he considers teachers front line workers, and expects they will be vaccinated by the spring.

“Part of restoring normalcy in our state is to make sure that we get our kids back in schools,” he said. “Part of achieving that goal is to make sure that we will have teachers in a safe, secure situation, vaccinated, able to be in a classroom teaching without fear of getting Covid-19.”

The state, like everywhere else, is in the midst of a lobbying frenzy to hash out who gets the vaccine after the most vital groups like seniors and health workers. According to the Dallas Morning News, hundreds of different groups and individuals have pled for priority access, ranging from journalists and non-frontline healthcare providers to Uber drivers.

The decision rests with Texas’ health commissioner John Hellerstedt, who is advised by a 17-member panel of health experts and officials.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a panel that provides recommendations on vaccine distribution, but the decision ultimately rests with state and local jurisdictions.

On Sunday, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended seniors above the age of 75 and about 30 million “frontline essential workers” like teachers and grocery store workers be next in line to get the vaccine after healthcare providers and long-term care residents.

Various states have taken divergent approaches to the thorny ethical and health questions of vaccine distribution. Following severe outbreaks at jails across the country, tens of thousands of inmates in Massachusetts prisons will be among the first to get the Covid vaccine. Florida, meanwhile, is prioritising essential workers including firefighters, paramedics and police officers.