Smokers In Indiana Can Obtain COVID Vaccine Before Teachers Due to Change in State Guidelines msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Mar 23, 2021 / 01:58 PM EST
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) Smokers, regardless of age, are now allowed to get on the vaccine waitlist; the state says they are following guidelines set by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Indiana State Department of Health confirmed the allowance to I-Team 8 in an email Thursday.
“According to the CDC, smokers and people suffering severe obesity are at higher risk of severe illness or death and therefore can be considered for standby list,” a spokesperson for Indiana’s health department said in the email. “We follow the CDC’s recommendations.”
To get on a waitlist, you must contact a pharmacy that is administering vaccines. It is also up to counties on if they are going to follow CDC guidelines.
Smokers In Indiana Can Obtain COVID Vaccine Before Teachers Due to Change in State Guidelines
On 2/26/21 at 5:05 PM EST
Indiana state health officials are permitting smokers on COVID-19 vaccine waitlists over teachers, angering school professionals. According to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], smokers and people suffering severe obesity are at higher risk of severe illness or death and therefore can be considered for standby list, a spokesperson for the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) said in an email to WISH-TV in response to the move. We follow the CDC s recommendations.
Indiana counties will each be responsible for deciding whether or not to allow smokers on the vaccine wait lists and the move does not mean if someone is a smoker they can simply schedule a vaccine appointment online. The state is still administering its doses only to key age groups, healthcare workers and first responders.
By Lindsey Jackson
Feb 18, 2021 11:27 PM
KNOX Co., Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) Earlier this year, Knox County health leaders discovered they had more than 1,000 doses of leftover vaccine after vaccinating all local healthcare workers and first responders.
So they decided to vaccinate local teachers who wanted a COVID-19 vaccine; however, the state hadn t made teachers eligible at the time. They indeed were not happy. But at the same time I felt it was the reasonable thing to do,” said Knox Co. Health Officer, Dr. Alan Stewart. “We did not do it knowing we were not supposed to do it. We thought we had permission to do it.
The Indiana House will soon weigh in on whether teachers need extra steps to authorize union dues taken from their paychecks, but it comes after the bill passed the Senate in an unusual way.