Who’s Next in Line for a COVID Vaccine?

Late Sunday the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended the nation's most elderly, as well as its most vulnerable medically, along with essential front-line workers, should be next in line for either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.

ACIP's rationale was based on the still limited supplies of the vaccines, coupled with the strategy that such prioritization will reduce acute care hospitalizations and retard coronavirus transmission.

ACIP's ranking of next-in-line eligibility includes:

• Individuals 75 years of age and older.

• Teachers, police and firefighters, essential factory personnel and even grocery workers, all of whom are considered to be essential to a functioning economy. Examples: people employed in transportation, water and sewage, and energy sectors.

• Those between 65 and 74 years old, or those over 16, who have a chronic medical condition that places them at elevated risk for life threatening complications from a COVID infection.

ACIP's recommendations are subject to approval by the CDC's director, which is expected this week. This 'second-tier' immunization group follows first-tier recipients - essential health workers and long-term care facility residents and employees.

Extra Doses in Pfizer Vials

Pharmacists are reporting they can get 6 or 7 doses from vials of the Pfizer vaccine that are only marked as containing 5. Pfizer overfilled the vials to correct for potential spillage. The FDA approved the doses for extra use last week, representing up to a 40% increase in available vaccine doses.