With the recent announcement by Governor Kim Reynolds of those 64 and younger now eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccine, some county health departments have yet to make that transition.
Greene County Public Health Director Becky Wolf says they have been administering COVID-19 vaccines to those 65 and older, as well as individuals in the Phase 1B Tier 1 and 2 groups. Those individuals include first responders, pre-kindergarten through 12th grade school staff, day care staff, individuals with disabilities that live at home and their caregivers. Wolf describes her immediate reaction when she heard the governor’s announcement of the new priority group of people.
“I’ll be honest, it kind of took the wind out of our sails for just a few minutes, because here we are opening up additional people to receive the vaccine – which is fantastic – but yet we don’t have anymore vaccine than we already did. It was a big concern. It took us several hours working with our providers to kind of figure out, how are we going to do this?”
Wolf notes that currently, only Jefferson Hy-Vee Pharmacy is vaccinating those 64 and younger. She says those that qualify may go outside the county to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Wolf explains her concerns if you go that route.
“But just keep in mind that if it’s a two dose series, you’re going to have to drive to get to that location again to get your second dose. I do feel like there’s probably some providers that are only going to provide – at least for briefly – to their own county, because they are trying to be fair (and) give their residents a fair opportunity.”
Those 64 and younger with underlying conditions, include cancer, chronic kidney and lung disease, Down Syndrome, heart conditions, weakened immune system, pregnancy, obesity with a Body Mass Index of 30 or greater, sickle cell disease, smoking and Type 2 diabetes mellitus. Information to sign up with Jefferson Hy-Vee Pharmacy can be found below.
Hy-Vee link for vaccine: