Indiana teachers can get coronavirus vaccine through federal program
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indiana State Department of Health’s age-based vaccination plan will open the door to almost 50% of all Indiana teachers by the middle of March, but the federal government is stepping in to speed up the process to vaccinate all teachers nationwide.
All teachers are now eligible to get the vaccine in Indiana through a federal program. The hope is to get teachers and kids back in school safely and full-time. That’s what the president of Indiana State Teachers Association (ISTA) has been pushing for all along.
“There are issues that we have raised that we still continue to stand by, that is the need to bring our students back to a more stable learning environment,” said ISTA president Keith Gambill.
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ISDH chief medical officer Dr. Lindsay Weaver said teachers can find federal vaccination locations on the state’s vaccination website, but they will have to sign up on the individual company’s sites.
“We are still learning more information about how this is going to work for our teachers here in Indiana so our federal pharmacy partners in Indiana are Kroger, Meijer and Walmart. [They] do have their own sign-up system, they are still on our maps,” said Weaver.
Gov. Eric Holcomb and state health officials on Wednesday said the state will continue to use the age-based vaccination program and not issue the vaccine based upon vocation.
Indiana State Department of Health on Wednesday reported nine more COVID-19 deaths, bringing the Hoosier death toll to 12,200.