DENVER — President Joe Biden said this week that every American who wants a COVID-19 vaccine could have one by the end of May. Until then, because of limited supply, Coloradans will continue to become eligible in phases based on age, health conditions and occupation.
More than one person has written to Next with Kyle Clark to ask how vaccine providers will go about verifying those qualifications, either because they want to make sure they can get vaccinated in the appropriate phase, or because they claim to know someone who jumped the line.
According to the Colorado Dept. of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), proving eligibility relies mostly on the honor system. Individual providers can decide on their own whether to ask for relevant documentation, whether that's a license to prove age, or a pay stub to show occupation-based eligibility.
"The intent of these classifications is to prioritize current workers who cannot maintain physical distance from others at their place of employment, who work in close contact with many people, especially indoors, and in places with poor ventilation," CDPHE said in a statement to Next. "...we are relying on self-attestation and providers to administer the vaccine in the spirit the phases were created in."
In some cases, CDPHE has worked with employers, like schools, to set up vaccination clinics. JBS and Cargill, local meatpacking plants, are doing the same. An employer in this scenario would quickly be able to verify a staff member's qualifications.
Starting Friday, Colorado moves into Phase 1B.3, meaning frontline essential workers in grocery and agriculture fields will become eligible, in addition to people who are 16 and older and have two or more high-risk conditions. Anyone 60 and older will also be eligible by Friday.
Have a question about something you want Next to answer? Email Next@9NEWS.com.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Full Episodes of Next with Kyle Clark