Florida to lower vaccination age soon, DeSantis says. 60 and up is next.

OCALA — Florida will distribute coronavirus vaccines according to age going forward, and not prioritize people in occupations that have not already gotten access to shots, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday.

Sometime this month, the state will lower the eligibility age for vaccination to 60, then to 55 a week later, DeSantis said during an appearance in Marion County. “That’s what we’re going to do instead of try to pick and choose different things.”

Florida is “not doing any occupation changes,” DeSantis added. “If you’re 60, you’re going to be able to go. And it doesn’t matter what your vocation is, and it doesn’t matter if you’re retired, you’re going to be able to go.”

The governor’s comments came a day after he said the state would vaccinate only educators who work in K-12 schools and are at least 50 years old. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden pledged on Tuesday that federally run vaccination sites in Florida will give shots to all school and child care workers, regardless of age and position.

Before this week, Florida had been distributing vaccines based on an order DeSantis signed Dec. 23. It limited vaccines to long-term care facility residents and staff, people 65 and older and health care workers with direct patient contact.

The conflicting directives on educators caused confusion across the state this week, particularly for those working in day care, pre-k and higher education roles. Many from United Faculty Florida, which represents more than 20,000 members across the state, wrote to DeSantis to complain.

”It is extremely disappointing that the governor of the state of Florida will boast about the accomplishments of our higher education institutions in order to show that the state is worth investing in, and will simultaneously force faculty and staff to return to campus without prioritizing their health and safety,” wrote Martha Meyer, union president at Florida International University. “This is a failure on the part of the governor to address the entire PreK-20 education in his state as a collective essential entity.”

Also Friday, DeSantis again praised the efficacy and ease of the one-dose coronavirus vaccine by Johnson & Johnson, which was recently approved for use in the U.S. Florida received a shipment of doses late Thursday, he said, adding that some will be used Friday afternoon to vaccinate law enforcement in Polk County.

The drug is “perfect for people in the workforce,” DeSantis said, because they have to get just one shot instead of two, as required by the other approved coronavirus vaccines.

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