Washington Moves Into Next Phase Of Vaccinations
OLYMPIA, WA — Washington has now entered Phase 1B of vaccine distribution, meaning the COVID-19 vaccine will be more broadly available for the state's highest-priority residents.
According to the governor, effective Monday afternoon, the state has entered first tier of Phase 1B, "Phase 1B1." That tier has also been modified slightly to allow anyone 65 years old or older to receive the vaccine. Previously, 1B1 only allowed patients over 70.
"This is going to make it possible for more people in risk categories to access the vaccine now," Inslee said.
Phase 1B1 also allows for vaccinations for residents who are 50 years old or older and live in multigenerational households. In the earlier Phase 1A, the vaccine was limited solely to health care providers and residents of long-term assisted living facilities.
"We are now moving from a limited number of Washingtonians to a rather broad scale, where mass vaccinations are now possible," Inslee said.
Gov. Jay Inslee announced the move Monday, as one of several major updates on the state's vaccination efforts.
Here's a look at what else is changing:
A goal to more than triple daily vaccinations.
Washington health officials have set a goal of having 45,000 vaccinations performed each day in the evergreen state. Currently, the governor says the state averages between 13,000 and 15,000 vaccinations each day.
“We are removing as many impediments as possible to Washingtonians getting vaccinated, we are going to deliver every dose that comes into our state," Inslee said. "We will still be dependent on the federal government for doses, but we are doing everything we can once it gets here.”
Plans for new, mass vaccination sites.
To meet that goal and increase daily vaccinations, the state is working on plans for several new mass vaccination sites, which will supplement vaccinations performed by health care providers.
Four mass vaccination sites will begin vaccinating as early as next week: at the Spokane Arena in Spokane, the Benton County Fairgrounds in Kennewick, Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee, and Clark County Fairgrounds in Ridgefield.
The governor's office says starting January 25, vaccines will be equally distributed between these mass vaccination sites and local pharmacies and clinics.
New reporting requirements from vaccine distributors.
Another way the state hopes to spread up vaccines is by asking for more accountability from vaccine providers. To that end, the governor's office has ordered that every single dose of the vaccine that had been acquired before this week be administered by Jan. 24.
"There are simply too many people who need access to vaccines for this process to lag any further," said Inslee. "We need to step up that game, significantly."
Going forward, the state will also be mandating that vaccine providers administer 95 percent of their allocated vaccines within one week of receiving the doses. The Department of Health will be collecting daily vaccination reports to make sure those vaccines are being administered quickly.
At a conference on the state of the pandemic last Wednesday, Secretary of Health Dr. Umair Shah noted that there had been criticism over how slowly vaccines were being distributed — which hopefully these new measures will address.
"It has not been enough," Shah said. "We've got to do better, and we are going to do better."
The creation of a new vaccine coordination agency.
To help oversee vaccine distribution in Washington, the governor has also announced the formation of the Washington State Vaccine Command and Coordination Center (WSVCCC). The WSVCCC will be staffed by Department of Health employees but will work with state businesses to "deliver vaccines across the state as effectively and efficiently as possible," according to the governor's office.
The WSVCCC includes several partnerships with local businesses: Microsoft has been tasked with providing technology expertise. Costco will be responsible for vaccine delivery by pharmacies. Even Starbucks has been called in to provide operational support.
“This is an opportunity to serve others and have impact on a significant humanitarian effort,” said Starbucks president Kevin Johnson. " Governor Inslee has convened some of the best public and private resources and capabilities to engage in a concerted effort to optimize and accelerate the vaccination process across our home state. We are proud to contribute in every way we can to help operationalize and scale equitable access to the vaccine.”
The official launch of the phase finder tool
Finally, Monday's conference also included the official launch of the state's Phase Finder tool, a program that helps users check their personal COVID-19 vaccine eligibility.
The program has been in beta for some time, but officially launched to the public. To take advantage of the phase finding too, users simply have to visit http://findyourphasewa.org/. From there, they'll be asked a few questions about their age and health risks, and the tool will tell them if they're eligible for the shot. If not, users can also be signed up to receive notifications when they do become eligible for vaccination.
This article originally appeared on the Lakewood-JBLM Patch
