COVID vaccine coming to Nebraska this month

    Healthcare workers in Nebraska will be first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, whose initial 100,000 doses are expected to arrive next week.
    For its first shipment, Gov. Pete Ricketts said the federal government forecasts Nebraska will receive about 100,000 doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.
    The first vaccines will come in staggered amounts over the coming three weeks.
    Healthcare workers, by the Governor’s outline, will include those in hospitals, ERs, Long-Term Care (LTC) facilities, urgent care and primary care access points with direct or indirect exposure to patients or infectious materials.
    Kay Schmidt, Infection Prevention Nurse at Chase County Community Hospital, realizes timelines are “all still fluid,” but is anticipating their front line healthcare workers could start receiving the vaccine the week of Dec. 20-26.
    The state is distributing vaccines through its health districts. Chase County residents will receive theirs through the Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department, she said.
    Schmidt is unsure how many doses they’ll get initially here, but they’ve established a “tier” approach. Front line workers, those at most risk of exposure, will be first, she said.
    Schmidt and the hospital’s employee health nurse will likely be administering the vaccines to its employees and providers.
    Each of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will be given in two doses—one has a period of 21 days between, the other has a 28-day span.
    Second in line, according to the state plan, to get the vaccine will be residents of long-term care facilities such as nursing homes, assisted living and independent living locations.
    The next group will be those with underlying medical conditions including cancer, kidney disease, obesity, heart conditions and diabetes.
    Next group includes the “essential critical infrastructure workforce” such as first responders, school employees, food processing/ag personnel and correctional staff.
    The homeless, incarcerated and people attending colleges/universities are next.
    Schmidt anticipates the general public here could start receiving the vaccine by early spring, but has no specifics yet on that.
New quarantine timelines
    The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) updated its quarantine guidelines last week, and Nebraska’s Directed Health Measures (DHMs) were eased to reflect these changes.
    Myra Stoney, director of the Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department, said the instructions for isolation and quarantine are in the state of Nebraska’s Directed Health Measures (DHMs), which now include a shorter quarantine time, recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

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