Fri, 04/16/2021 - 3:27pm John McCright
By:
Erin Petenko of VTDigger.org
Vermonters 16 to 18 years old can register for the COVID-19 vaccine beginning Saturday at 10 a.m., two days earlier than originally planned, officials announced at a press conference Friday.
The rest of the latest age group 16- to 29-year-olds will be able to register for the vaccine Monday at 6 a.m. Gov. Phil Scott said the step would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to make sure they can register for a Pfizer vaccine, which is the only option for people in their age group.
“I wanted to give them a bit of a head start to make sure all the appointments weren’t taken by the time they had an opportunity to sign up,” Scott said.
As COVID-19 vaccine rollout continues in Vermont, clinics are working hard to ensure as few doses as possible go to waste, state health officials say.
As of Tuesday, the rate of wasted or non-viable doses in Vermont was 0.2%, or approximately 773 doses since the state began vaccinating residents, according to the state s health department. As of Tuesday, more than 420,000 doses of the vaccine had been administered, department data show.
Comparatively, New Hampshire Public Radio reported wastage rates of several northeastern states in mid-March: New Hampshire s was 0.69%, Massachusetts was 0.08% and Rhode Island s was 0.06%.
Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine explained Friday that the term wastage was broad and had many components.
Vermont suspends use of J&J after federal recommendation
WILSON RING, Associated Press
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The state of Vermont announced Tuesday it was suspending the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in the state “out of an abundance of caution” while scientists study a series of rare blood clots reported in a small number of patients.
About 2,000 Johnson & Johnson appointments scheduled for Tuesday were canceled as were about 2,000 more that were scheduled for the rest of the week.
Meanwhile the state will reach out to people whose appointments were canceled to reschedule them. People will be offered the opportunity to make appointments for the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.
The Montpelier Bridge
Vials of the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine. Provided Image.
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott announced today that the state would abide by a request from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control to âpauseâ administering the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine at state clinics.
Scott said at his regular COVID news conference Tuesday afternoon that the state would âout of an abundance of cautionâ suspend usage of the J&J vaccine at state clinics starting today. He noted that the J&J vaccine is still âsafe and effectiveâ and that he received that particular vaccine last week.