CT seniors age 75 and older can register for the COVID vaccine next week

Photo | Contributed Colleen Teehan, system manager of pharmacy at Hartford HealthCare, reconstitutes a second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on Jan. 4.

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By Keith M. Phaneuf, CT Mirror

Elderly Connecticut residents not living in nursing homes will be cleared to register for the vaccination next week, Gov. Ned Lamont announced Monday.

Connecticut hospitals are expected to lead a series of regional outreach programs, working with local health and social service agencies, clinics and other civic and religious groups to sign up residents age 75 and older for the free vaccination, the governor said.

In addition, the administration will release details Thursday about a new website and phone number that seniors can use to schedule an appointment.

“We’re going to make sure there are no vaccines left on the shelf,” the governor said Monday afternoon during his regular televised briefing on the pandemic.

And while state officials are working to increase the quantity of vaccine available here, Lamont said the process will take a while.

“There won’t be room for everybody on Day One so you’re going to have to be patient,” he said.

Connecticut began vaccinating doctors and other front-line health care workers, along with nursing home residents, earlier this month, in what’s been termed “Phase 1A” of the state’s strategy to inoculate people against COVID-19.

Elderly residents not in nursing homes are the primary group in the next phase, 1B, and administration officials said they could begin receiving immunizations next week.

Connecticut already has administered 141,055 doses of the vaccine to date. Vaccines from drug-makers Pfizer and Moderna both require two doses to fully protect patients.

According to Lamont, the state has issued 133,190 initial doses to date, and 7,865 follow-up inoculations.

About 3.5% of the state’s population has received at least one dose so far. Connecticut ranks fifth nationally among all states, Lamont said, in terms of the percentage of its population vaccinated against the coronavirus.

All vaccinations will be free and will only be provided through an appointment, said Josh Geballe, Lamont’s chief operating officer.

“It’s all appointment based. We don’t want people just showing up,” he said.

And while residents will get details starting Thursday on how to schedule an appointment, either online or by phone, state officials hope that many elderly residents will hear from health care agencies before that.

Hospitals will be coordinating with many local groups on regional outreach programs.

The goal, said Patrick Charmel, president and CEO of Griffin Hospital in Derby, is to ensure disadvantaged and underserved populations are not missed.

Lamont also announced Monday that 7,364 of the 116,244 coronavirus tests completed Friday through Sunday came back positive, a rate of 6.3%.

Another 92 people in the state died from COVID-19 during that period. Connecticut has recorded 6,416 deaths from the virus since the pandemic began.

Lamont also announced 33 additional people were hospitalized with the coronavirus over the last three days, bringing the statewide total to 1,142.

Daily and weekly test positivity rates rose steadily through much of the fall, and spiked briefly following the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

“We feel like we’ve got it under control for now,” Lamont said, though he urged residents to remain vigilante about maintaining social distance and using face masks.

The governor noted elementary and secondary school children recently began returning to classes and college students will soon start their spring semester.