As there are still not enough doses of vaccine to meet demand, a coalition of health workers in the Bay Area on Wednesday urged all health systems to prioritize COVID-19 vaccines for people with 65 years or older, a group that was dying far away. during the pandemic and move some essential workers to the list.
“We need to be direct and honest with the public that even though we want to vaccinate everyone, right now we don’t have enough vaccine to do it,” said Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara County Public Health Officer. “Given the limited supply of vaccines, we need to prioritize vaccination of people at increased risk of death or serious illness.”
Recent changes in state rules have changed the list of priorities, as there are doctors, nurses and patients in residences in the first group who can be vaccinated, called phase 1A, and people aged 65 or over in the second group, who is called phase 1B. However, also in this second group are “essential workers” of all ages, including teachers, police firefighters, paramedics, daycare workers, farm workers, and transportation workers, along with Californians living in nearby areas. prone to outbreaks, such as homeless and inmates.
Across the state, there are 3 million people in the Phase 1A group and an additional 8.5 million in the Phase 1B group.
Unions and other groups representing various occupations are putting a lot of pressure on health care providers and political leaders and receiving thousands of calls from members of the public who want to receive their shots now. But California only received one million doses of vaccine this week from the federal government. As of Wednesday, 3.8 million Californians have received at least one dose.
Many county health departments and private health care providers such as Kaiser, Sutter and others already give priority to the elderly.
The science is clear. Across the state, most cases of COVID are occurring in younger people. But most deaths occur among the elderly.
As of Wednesday, 74.4% of the 41,811 people in California who have died from COVID-19 were age 65 or older, according to data from the California Department of Public Health. Another 18.8% of deaths were people aged 50 to 64 years. Only 6.7% of deaths have occurred in people under 50 years of age.
Men account for 57% of all deaths statewide. Women 43%.
But in terms of the number of cases, 70.3% of Californians who have tested positive for COVID-19 are under 50 years old. There are also breakdowns by race. Nearly half of the deaths, or 46%, were Latino, while 32% were white, 12% were Asian, and 6% were black.
“Three out of four deaths from COVID-19 in Marin are among residents age 75 and older,” said Dr. Matt Willis, Marin County’s public health officer, who has the largest adult population per capita of any. California County. “A vaccine that is offered to a resident over the age of 75 is 300 times more likely to save lives than a vaccine that is offered to a person under the age of 50.”
In Wednesday’s announcement, Marin, Napa, Santa Cruz and Solano counties said they prioritize residents 75 and older.
Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties said they prioritize people 65 and older. All counties do so in addition to continuing to vaccinate Phase 1A health workers, many of whom have already received a first dose.
Alameda and Sonoma counties did not join the other counties in demanding that priority be given to the elderly.
At a news conference Wednesday to announce the opening of two major vaccination sites at Oakland Coliseum and Cal-State Los Angeles, as part of a program announced by President Biden to build 100 federal vaccination sites, Gov. Gavin Newsom noted that in the past few weeks California and other states have begun receiving more doses.
The state went from vaccinating 50,000 people a day ago a month ago to 150,000 a day now. Biden has ordered 200 million more doses from Pfizer and Moderna. Vaccines from Johnson & Johnson and other companies are expected to be approved in the coming weeks, increasing supply.
COVID hospitalizations have dropped 30 percent in recent weeks and the number of cases has dropped from 60,000 a day a month ago across the state to about 10,000 a day now.
“We are moving forward aggressively and I think you will see these vaccination figures continue to rise,” Newsom said. “We are aware that we need to receive more support and supply not only from the federal administration, but more support and supply directly from these manufacturers.”
Many of the problems in the supply of vaccines have been because the Trump administration did not provide states with as many doses as it had promised, said Dr. John Swartzberg, professor emeritus of public health at UC Berkeley. In addition, Trump’s White House did not have a national vaccine distribution plan and did not give states enough funding to create mass vaccination centers. Biden took office 13 days ago.
“I can’t blame states or county health departments,” he said. “It’s the federal government’s fault.”
Swartzberg said the California state government has some responsibility for the slowdown. He said the leveling system that Governor Gavin Newsom originally deployed was too complicated and rigid, leaving too many doses in the freezers. Some medical providers have also withheld doses to ensure that doctors, nurses, and other medical workers have dose dosing available.
As of Wednesday, the number in California was improving: 64% of the doses it has received have been given.
Last month, Newsom allowed anyone 65 and older to go up the vaccine priority list as a way to administer more vaccine.
In the coming weeks, the situation should improve, said Swartzberg, who urged patience.
“I appreciate the frustration,” Swartzberg said. “I am just frustrated. But try to take a step back from the situation and say “I can protect myself from infection.” I can wear a mask, I can distance myself socially. I can stay home. This will virtually ensure that you do not become infected. You can save time until the system works and the vaccine is plentiful. ”