STATEHOUSE — As most schools have returned for either in-person or online classes throughout the state after an extended break Christmas break to the news that a vaccine is now available, many teachers throughout the state feel they need to be given priority.
Teachers are not among the special groups that qualify for advance COVID vaccines such as front line workers, first responders, and law enforcement officers. Right now those groups along with people over the age of 70 can get a vaccine in Indiana.
State Senate President Rod Bray said though he understands the concern of teachers, the plan as it stands now is the right course of action.
“The plan currently is that when you get all the folks that are 80 years old or older vaccinated, you’ve got 50-percent of the fatalities taken care of,” Bray said. “By the time you get 60 and above … you’ve taken care of 93 percent of the fatalities and transformed the impact that COVID-19 has had on the state of Indiana.”
Bray recognizes that some teachers will be able to qualify for the vaccine sooner than others if they are over the age of 60 or 70. Still, Bray said the most vulnerable population should be given priority.
The Indiana chapter of the American Teacher Federation has said that younger teachers need to be given just as much priority for COVID vaccines as older teachers.
“The bottom line is we have 6.7 million people in Indiana to vaccinate,” he added. “We can’t do them all in one day. There has to been an order to be done, so that’s the best we could do.”
Teachers are not in a high-risk category, according to recent studies. Other medical studies suggest the virus has less impact on school-age children.
Dr. Kris Box said in a briefing earlier this week that by the end of January, they are expecting to be getting 79,000 doses of COVID vaccine a week. She said that cannot promise vaccines they don’t have yet to people.
