COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expanding to 10,000 Hoosiers 16 and older undergoing dialysis
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The COVID-19 vaccine eligibility this week is expanding to Hoosiers aged 16 and older who are undergoing dialysis.
Dr. Lindsay Weaver, chief medical officer for the Indiana State Department of Health, made the announcement Wednesday during Gov. Eric Holcomb’s weekly coronavirus briefing.
The state will provide vaccine to 10,000 individuals who are undergoing dialysis. After that, the vaccine eligibility will expand to individuals who have sickle cell disease, people who have gotten a solid organ transplant, individuals with down syndrome, active primary lung cancer, lymphoma, leukemia, or multiple myeloma. This expansion will also include people undergoing cancer treatment or have undergone cancer treatment in the past three months.
Weaver said the plan to vaccine Hoosiers aged 50 and older will be the next phase, when applicable.
Weaver also noted the state is eagerly awaiting word on if the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will receive emergency use this week. It’s unclear how many doses Indiana will receive if the one-dose vaccine is approved.
ISDH is also deploying 10 mobile vaccine units to counties where vaccine appointments are booked for the foreseeable future. Those counties include: Bartholomew, Clinton, Dearborn, Greene, Lake, LaPorte, Lawrence, Randolph, Scott and White.
Appointments at these mobile sites are required and can be made by visiting ourshot.in.gov or calling 211. State eligibility requirements remain in effect for the mobile sites.
Weaver also announced the state will no longer administer first doses of vaccine to people who live in other states. Health care workers and emergency responders who lived out of the state were initially offered the vaccine to protect health care infrastructures.
“At this time the majority of those populations have received a vaccine and the capacity of health care systems has improved,” Weaver said.
Out-of-state residents who received the first dose of vaccine in Indiana will still receive the second dose.
Indiana State Department of Health on Wednesday reported 14 more COVID-19 deaths, for a total of 12,039.