DENVER, Colorado — Phase 1 of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is relatively simple in Colorado. Frontline healthcare workers get the shot at their hospitals and nursing home residents at their homes. Future phases present many logistical challenges, many of which are still being sorted through.
“If you work at a grocery store or you work at one of these places or you're a teacher even like how would we know?” said University of Colorado Hospital’s infectious disease expert, Dr. Michelle Barron.
Barron also sat on the governor's advisory panel for pandemic response and said there is a state audit of sorts to prevent people from cutting in line. A bigger challenge will be notifying those whose turn it is.
The state health department said it likely won't be the one to make those notifications. Barron said in that case these notifications may come directly from your healthcare provider when the time is right. It could come from a patient portal notification, an email, phone call or even a letter.
“This is the beauty of having an electronic medical record is that you could potentially develop a program that could say, ok who are patients that are over the age of 75?” said Barron
It’s important to keep in mind that nothing is set in stone. For example, the state's guidelines have those 65 and older as a priority in phase 2. But, federal guidelines recently changed to say 75 and older, so we may see some alignment.
For residents that think they need a shot before a certain group, the states asked them to sit tight.
The state is dealing with many moving parts behind the scenes right now, including limited doses. Care providers are doing their planning too, for when more shots come to the rescue.
“Some form of formal communication will come through, and again, I would just again ask everybody to have a level of patience,” said Barron.
The state health department said it's working with healthcare providers and public health agencies to determine how many people will be eligible in phase 2. They're also working with professional organizations, like unions, to ensure they're properly reaching essential workers in the next phase set to begin in the spring.
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