AP
Washington Hispanic:
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announced steps Tuesday to accelerate COVID vaccines – 19 to “get more shots in more arms.”
Hogan said that 270. 150 doses of the vaccine have been put directly into the hands of first-line vaccinators in the state in the last three weeks. However, as of Tuesday, only 76. 916 people have been vaccinated so far, that is, around 1.3% of the state’s population.
“Although none of us are delighted with the pace of this implementation during the first weeks, I can assure you that it is improving every day.” Hogan said at a press conference.
The governor said that 11. 553 people were vaccinated in the state on Tuesday, the highest number yet.
Starting Wednesday, the Republican governor said the National Guard will begin dispatching emergency vaccination support teams across the state to help local health departments expand immunization capacity. Each team will have 14 members on call to help provide logistical support to the vaccination clinics.
Hogan also said there has been mixed data on vaccines that have been administered so the state can determine where help is needed. The governor said he is issuing an executive order requiring all providers to report data to the state within 24 hours after the administration of the vaccines. The data will be made public.
Hogan said that any facility that has not managed at least the 75 % of your first total doses may have future allocations reduced until they can accelerate vaccinations.
«Any provider who has excessive doses will need to notify their local health department so that those doses can be reassigned, ”he said.
The governor also said he expects Maryland to receive about 72, 000 doses of vaccines per week for the foreseeable future.
Hogan stressed that the vaccination process is a “massive undertaking” that will take months. At the current rate, Hogan said, the state would expect to have 1.8 million doses by the end of May for about 30% of the state’s population.
Earlier Tuesday, the University of Maryland Medical System announced that it had administered the second dose of Pfizer COVID vaccines – 19 to five employees of the system: two doctors, a nurse, a respiratory therapist and an environmental service worker. They had received their first doses on 14 and were among the first in Maryland to be vaccinated.
Under Maryland’s vaccination plan, the state is now in Phase 1A to vaccinate healthcare workers, residents and staff of nursing homes and first responders. Hogan said the state has expanded priority populations in this phase. They will soon be vaccinated for correctional officials, law enforcement agencies and front-line judicial personnel. In general, Phase 1A includes more than 500. 000 state residents.
An expanded Phase 1B will include all Maryland students from 75 years and older, special needs group homes, high-risk inmates, populations with developmental disabilities, government immunization continuity, as well as teachers, childcare, and education personnel. Phase 1B includes an estimate of 860, 000 of Maryland. Based on the current rate of allocation, the State expects to fully enter Phase 1B by the end of January.
The Governor also outlined a new Phase 1C to include all Maryland workers from 65 to 74 years, and workers of other critical sectors, including grocery stores, public transportation, agricultural production, and manufacturing. Phase 1C includes an estimate of 772, 000 Marylanders. Based on the current rate of allocation, the State expects to fully enter Phase 1C in early March.
Hogan noted that an updated Phase 2 will include Maryland workers from 16 to 64 years that are at increased risk of COVID disease – 19 due to comorbidities, as well as essential workers in the critical public services and other sectors. Overall, Phase 2 includes approximately 1.1 million Maryland residents.