THE VILLAGES, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis said again Tuesday that long-term care residents and staff and the elderly population in general will be the focus of Florida's early COVID-19 vaccine efforts.
What You Need To Know
- Gov. DeSantis says elderly population, LTC staff remains focus of vaccine efforts
- He cited CDC's recommendations but says those aren't binding to states
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DeSantis, during a news conference at The Villages, cited recommendations from the Centers of Disease Control Prevention suggesting that young, essential workers also be at the frontline of vaccines.
The governor stated that would mean "the 22-year-old grocery store" worker would be prioritized equally with long-term care residents and persons 74 and older. He said the CDC guidelines are not binding to individual states.
"We are not going to put young, healthy workers ahead of our elderly, vulnerable population," he said. "Our vaccines are going to be targeted for our elderly population.
"As we get into the general community, the vaccines are going to be targeted where the risk is greatest, and that is in our elderly population."
After his remarks, a number of workers and residents of The Villages — which is primarily a retirement community — received vaccines.
DeSantis added that more than 100 total long-term care facilities in Pinellas and Broward counties, the areas with Florida's most concentrated senior populations, have completed the first dose of vaccinations.
According to DeSantis, Florida received 179,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine last week that were distributed to five hospitals. He said strike teams were used to help get the vaccinations completed at long-term care facilities as quickly as possible.
Florida has received 127,000 additional doses of the Pfizer vaccine this week, DeSantis said.
FL is prioritizing our elderly population for vaccination against COVID-19. We are seeing progress made regarding residents of LTC facilities and will not be putting young & healthy “essential” employees ahead of our general 65+ population when it comes to vaccine distribution. pic.twitter.com/adbqIHjUiK
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) December 23, 2020
The state also expects to receive 367,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine by the end of the day, DeSantis said. He pointed out that the Moderna vaccine can be distributed more widely because it does not need to be stored in the extremely cold conditions required for the Pfizer vaccine. DeSantis said that makes it possible to add 173 hospitals to those that can receive vaccines, and that would cover the entire state. Eight county health departments also are being authorized to receive vaccines, DeSantis said.
CVS and Walgreen's now is also able to help administer the vaccines to long-term care facilities in Florida, DeSantis said.