I don’t know the specific rules NY has adopted but this doesn’t seem accurate to me. If accurate, it definitely doesn’t seem fair.
My state, Oregon, used a strictly aged-based screen for prioritizing vaccinations. Your wife’s account suggests that a health-based screening took priority. Is that true? Did you and your wife answer a thorough health questionnaire?
In any case, I would recommend that you reach out to some younger accomplices to secure a more favorable vaccination date for your wife. You could talk to relatives, friends, and neighbors to find a persistent tech-savvy young person to help with this good cause. Many times, simply stating what you need and making the request is the biggest hurdle to getting what you want.
How can any public health system give you vaccination priority but then deny it to a close person in your household? Good luck, Richard
Thanks @Terry4, we did answer health questionnaires, and I got my vaccine shots on Jan 21 and Feb 21. Her response came a few weeks after my initial application. She is in group 1c, and all members of that group are delayed until July.
This document adds a new group of eligibles to the vaccination program but acknowledges that eligibility is ongoing for many groups, including individuals 65 and over. It then states: “Retail pharmacies or physician network or practice groups, after vaccinating their own patient-facing staff, should only vaccinate persons aged 65 years or older.”
This suggests to me that you should target your efforts to secure a vaccination appointment for your wife with local pharmacies. It appears that NY policy recognizes the existence of people like me who asked the pharmacy to put them on a “standby” list so that no doses go to waste.
I think you could help your wife’s chances of getting a vaccination sooner by seeking to be placed on a local pharmacy standby list. Writing up a card with your wife’s name, phone number, interest in placement on a standby list, and presenting this card in person at the pharmacy counter could do the trick. You could also add your wife’s birth date to this card.
Oh no! Minnesota is “rallying” again. someone sent me this. I don’t understand how the vulnerable can rally?!?!? I don’t get it. Oh, I see, they do it from cars.
@Terry4, @JamesIgoe and @MM1, I have found a phone number for asking questions about the vaccines in my county. I am going to call tomorrow. Maybe I can get my wife an appointment in March instead of July.
I’m also in NY and I know a couple of people 65+ who have been able to get their shots. Definitely push to get your wife vaccinated. She should not have to wait until July!
I had the most wicked case of constipation of my life 3 days after first vaccine, and have been wracking my brain for the past few days what could have brought it on because my diet had been consistent. Could the vaccine have contributed? Any others with same experience?
I did a quick check, and could find nothing that indicated a relationship. Oddly, I did come across a study of bowel problems with MMR vaccines, although that also found no relationship to the vaccine itself.
Personally, I don’t really have this concern normally, but I do notice that my habits are reduced for a day or two, maybe longer, when traveling. Nothing to do with cleanliness, but maybe some tension and unfamiliarity…
Minnesota had a lottery for teachers and those over 65. I signed up and got a reject text in 24 hours. I did not expect to win a lottery. However they had my name and contact info and I live very close to the vaccination site. I previously had been there for Covid testing too. I was apparently low hanging fruit when they opened for vaccinations and I got a text invitation to schedule an appointment during the first week of full operation at the ConventionCenter. My second vaccination with Moderna is this Saturday, March 6.
BTW Terry there were people hanging out waiting for an opening to take any extra vaccinations when I got the 1st shot. The site continued operating for 2 hours after the people with appointments had left.
Wow! I think “standbys” are a natural outgrowth of this vaccination effort. I wonder if this phenomena will fade as new formulations like the newly approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine that doesn’t need unusual freezing requirement become more common.
From what I understand, each vial only allows so many shots to be drawn from it. Once it is taken out, you have to discard any remaining shots at the end of the day if not used. Most places have a list of such people that can be there at a moments notice to avoid waste. They like to use people who are already qualified but some places have been known to bend the rules a little.
In MO right now they are allowing Type 2 diabetics of any age, but some places are limiiting it to 75+ or 65+. Thanks to a facebook group that gives web sites of rural places offering shots, my wife and I who are both type 2 diabetics were able to get our first Moderna shot by traveling 2 hours one way to a small pharmacy in the middle of nowhere. They scheduled our return visit right after we were done. In and out really quickly and a very scenic drive.
The Type 1 diabetes community welcomed the policy change, putting Minnesota in line with 22 other states. Minnesota had already said that Type 2 diabetes would qualify.
The are 7,000 medical conditions that the Food and Drug Administration considers to be rare because each affects fewer than 200,000 people. But when added together, rare diseases afflict 8 to 10% of the population.
Those diseases [including T1D] were not initially included when the qualifying medical conditions were announced last Thursday. Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said the changes were made to align the state with federal guidance.
I’m confused, I thought the omission of T1D at the state level flowed from the fact that it was left out at the federal level.
I’m happy to read that Minnesota corrected this inequity.
