Who Gets The Coronavirus Vaccine First?
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- When a coronavirus vaccine becomes available, there won't be enough for everyone.
"Every single American would benefit at some level from a vaccine, and I think there's no way you can ramp up any sort of production in time to get everybody in your first pass," says Dr. Amy Crawford-Faucher of AHN Internal Medicine.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have devised a framework for who should get priority.
"It makes a lot of sense to be proactive to decide if we had a limited amount of anything, who could benefit the most. I think that's actually very smart that they're doing that."
In the first phase would be health care workers, first responders, people with medical conditions that put them at risk — including people with a body mass index of greater than 40 — and people in long-term care facilities and other close quarters.
The second phase would include essential workers, teachers, school staff, people at moderate risk, older people, the homeless and people in group homes and prisons. Young adults and children go in the third phase.
"They're not at high risk for dying from COVID if they get it. I think that's maybe where they're drawing the line on that," said Dr. Crwaford-Faucher.
Everyone else is in the fourth phase.
"On the one hand, you should say, wow, I'm really lucky I'm not in a high-risk group. That's good for me. I think it also highlights we're not going to be able to easily pass our way out of this until a vast majority of the population is immunized with an effective vaccine," the doctor said.
In this priority scheme, Dr. Crawford-Faucher would be one of the first to be vaccinated but she's willing to step aside.
"I'm a health care worker, I'm over 50. But I don't have any chronic diseases. I would rather, let's look at the highest risk people, and vaccinate them first."
This framework is only a guide. The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will be doing the detailed work. And it will be on state and local officials to figure out who in their regions would fall into the priority groups.
