COVID-19 Vaccine: Fire and EMS Eligible for Vaccination January 18

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Immunization Program

This message is being shared with COVID-19 vaccinators and local health departments

Today, the Wisconsin Development of Health Services (DHS) will be announcing that police and fire personnel will be eligible for COVID-19 vaccination beginning January 18. As pharmacies participating in the Federal Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program complete their initial round of vaccine in skilled nursing facility program, they will begin to administer vaccine in Assisted Living Facilities. In addition, some of these facilities have contracted directly with other providers, such as local pharmacies or public health departments, and are also able to vaccinate at this time.

As DHS awaits the State Disaster Medical Advisory Committee’s (SDMAC) final recommendations for Phase 1b, many vaccine providers across the state have already completed vaccinations for phase 1a or have begun vaccinating unaffiliated health care providers and EMS.

In anticipation of this milestone and with our vaccine infrastructure having capacity to vaccinate more, local health departments will be leading the coordination to provide vaccinations to police and fire personnel. DHS will also identify any gaps in vaccine accessibility and partner with police and fire associations to meet the needs of this population.

The decision to make this population eligible for vaccinations will ensure more Wisconsinites can be protected against COVID-19. As the vaccination initiative continues to ramp up, DHS will make every effort to communicate the most up-to-date information as soon as it is available.

For information, resources, and data on the program, we recommend you visit https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/covid-19/vaccine.htm