COMMUNITY UPDATE

To be as fair and efficient with distribution as possible, the state has developed a phased approach to vaccine distribution to save lives and end the crisis. All information below (and much more) available at: covid19.colorado.gov.

PHASE 1 WINTER 2020 - 2021

1A

• Highest-risk health care workers and individuals: • People who have direct contact with COVID-19 patients for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period. • Long-term care facility staff and residents.

1B

• Coloradans age 70+, moderate-risk health care workers, first responders, frontline essential workers, and continuity of state government: • Health care workers with less direct contact with

COVID-19 patients (e.g. home health, hospice, pharmacy, dental, etc.) and EMS. • Firefighters, police, COVID-19 response personnel, correctional workers, and funeral services. • People age 70 and older. • Frontline essential workers in education, food and agriculture, manufacturing, U.S. postal service, public transit and specialized transportation staff, grocery, public health, frontline essential human service workers, and direct care providers for

Coloradans experiencing homelessness. • Essential officials from executive, legislative, and judicial branches of state government. • Essential frontline journalists.

PHASE 2 SPRING 2021

• Higher-risk individuals and other essential workers: • People age 60-69. • People age 16-59 with obesity, diabetes, chronic lung disease, significant heart disease, chronic kidney disease, cancer, or are immunocompromised. • Other essential workers and continuity of local government. • Adults who received a placebo during a COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial.

PHASE 3 SUMMER 2021

• The general public: anyone age 16-59.

Colorado is in Phase 1A and 1B.

631 vacccine providers 410,050 people immunized with 1 dose

109,208 people immunized with 2 doses

as of Jan. 27, 2021

WHERE DO I GET THE VACCINE? The majority of early phase 1 recipients will receive the vaccine through their employer, local public health agency or through the federal government’s Pharmacy Partnership for Long-term Care Program.

HOW MUCH WILL IT COST? It will be free. The cost will not be an obstacle to getting the vaccine. Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance are required to cover the cost of the COVID-19 vaccines. In addition, uninsured Coloradans will have access to free vaccines. A vaccine provider may not turn you away for the vaccine because of an inability to pay or your medical coverage status.

“Stopping a pandemic requires using all the tools available to us. To slow the spread of disease, Coloradans should continue to use basic public health guidance, like physical distancing and mask-wearing, until a vaccine is widely available and used by Coloradans.”

CAN I GET COVID-19 FROM THE VACCINE? A COVID-19 vaccine will give you protection against the disease without having to get sick with the actual virus. It is not possible to get COVID-19 from a vaccine, but it is possible to get symptoms that are consistent with COVID-19. The goal of the vaccine is to provide your body with the tools it needs to fight the COVID-19 virus if you were to get infected.

HOW DO WE KNOW THE VACCINE IS SAFE? The FDA requires that vaccines undergo a rigorous scientific process, including three phases of clinical trials, before they authorize or approve the vaccine. To date, the independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board overseeing Phase 3 trials of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines has not identified or reported any serious safety concerns.

Chuong Lai

Littleton Age: 88

“We decided for my dad to get vaccinated because of the risks if he caught COVID from transmission.Seniors his age most likely would not make it if they got COVID. He got his first dose of Moderna on January 11 and his second dose on February 8. He registered through his primary care provider. He received the shot within ten minutes of checking in, and you need to wait 15 minutes after the shot to make sure there are no side effects. I took him because he does not drive. The process was fairly easy for my dad, but I know that hasn’t been the case for most.” [Interview with daughter Yen Lai] Jeannie Tran

Denver Nurse Wendy Bui

Denver Healthcare Worker

“My hospital was fortunate to get enough doses for all employees who wanted a vaccine. We were able to sign up online, those who work in areas with more exposure (ICU and Emergency Department) got to sign up first.

I got the vaccine so that I could protect the patients that I work with and also protect my family and friends. I don’t want to see more lives being lost. I want us to be able to get back to some sort of normalcy again.”

“I know there are a lot of misconceptions about the vaccine, but it is safe and I know much safer than getting COVID. I got this vaccine because I believe in science. Thank you to all those who played a vital role in making this happen. From the brilliant and hard-working individuals that developed this vaccine to those that scheduled the appointments and administered it. I hope that in the months ahead when you are given the opportunity to receive it, please think twice before you decline it. Together we can fight COVID.”