(WXYZ) — Wayne and Oakland counties are trying to complete COVID-19 vaccinations for priority groups with limited vaccine availability.
The Wayne County Public Health Department says the county is continuing with vaccinations for nursing home residents and staff, EMS first responders and essential health care infrastructure. The county plans to publicly announce when people in the next phase of vaccine distribution can make appointments to receive shots.
“Wayne County continues to vaccinate individuals in Phase 1A based on the prioritization schedule and vaccine availability as directed by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services,” Wayne County Chief Health Strategist Mouhanad Hammami said. “The vaccine supplied has been less than requested which poses a challenge in moving through priority groups in a timely and efficient manner.”
On Wednesday, the state of Michigan increased the populations eligible under the vaccinating plan created by the state Department of Health and Human Services. In addition to accelerating the move to Phase 1B, the state moved up teachers, seniors older than 65 years, and front-line workers from subsequent phases.
“We are getting people vaccinated as fast as we receive vaccine supply from the state of Michigan,” Dr. Hammami added.
Currently, Wayne County receives up to 975 doses a week of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine from the state of Michigan. Each week Wayne County requests 4,875 vaccine doses, the maximum allowable, to meet its present demand.
Oakland County is also requesting the state to increase its vaccine allotment; County Executive Dave Coulter said the vaccine supply is currently limited.
Like Wayne County, the Oakland County Health Department is currently vaccinating priority 1A individuals and asks for patience with expanding to the next phase.
Coulter released the following statement:
“Oakland County is in the early stages of administering the COVID-19 vaccine, but supply is limited. Our Health Department is currently vaccinating priority 1A individuals including emergency medical personnel, healthcare workers, and residents of long-term care facilities. We look forward to expanding to the next phase which will include essential workers and residents 65 and older but ask for their patience because the number of appointments available is limited to the number of doses we have received from the state. We urge the State of Michigan to increase Oakland County’s vaccine allotment while expanding the number of providers administering the vaccine. Meanwhile, our Nurse on Call line is flooded with questions about appointment availability. Please visit our vaccine webpage for the latest on our vaccine supply and scheduling appointments.”
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