Governor Ralph Northam announced COVID-19 vaccine roll out plans during his press conference Wednesday.
Right now, people eligible for group 1A are getting the vaccine. That includes people most at risk like healthcare professionals and long term care facilities.
Group 1B will be able to get the COVID-19 vaccine next. This group is made up of front-line essential workers and Northam said teachers will be included in that group.
He said they are the largest group of front-line workers, making up about 285,000 people in Virginia. Northam added, “We all love teachers and we value the work that they do….they are not high on the list just because we like them they are high on the list of essential workers because teachers are critical to getting school back open and that’s critical to getting people back to work.”
Northam said opening schools doesn’t depend on vaccinating teachers but will make it easier.
Other front-line workers in this group include:
- Police
- Firefighters
- Grocery store employees
- Food plant employees
- Bus drivers
- Transit workers
- Food agriculture
- Corrections
- Mail carriers
On Wednesday Northam also stressed the importance of using all the vaccines that distribution facilities are getting so that nothing is wasted. He said, “Move quickly, empty freezers, clear shelves, show us shots in Virginian’s arms.”
Vaccine supply numbers in Virginia will be public so everyone can see the numbers, Northam said.