Long-term care communities and families prep for incoming vaccine
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
With the FDA committee recommending Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine approval, long term care facilities in the state are one step closer to getting doses.
Dr. Randall Williams, director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, said Missouri will get 105,000 doses of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine as early as Sunday. An FDA advisory committee is set to review Moderna's safety data on Thursday.
Williams said the plan is to use 70,000 of the Moderna vaccine doses strictly for long-term care facilities across the state. The state plans to vaccinate at least two-thirds of long term care facilities starting next week if the vaccine is approved.
The state is targeting residents and workers in long-term care facilities -- a category that includes nursing homes -- and health-care workers its the first phase of its vaccine distribution plan. Health officials hope by targeting those groups they can see a reduction in deaths and strain on hospitals more quickly.
The Chief Wellness Officer for Cedarhurst Living, a long term care community that operates a home in Columbia, Angie Keeven said they are already making plans for administering the first vaccine. She said all of their communities are signed up with either CVS or Walgreens for their distribution.
Some in other parts of the county have already set up clinic dates for their staff and residents.
"We're hoping life will be able to go back to somewhat normal, or a new normal sometime in 2021," Keeven said.
Keeven said they have not received any guidance from the state health department yet about how the vaccine could impact visitation policies, but expect that to come shortly.
"I imagine the state's going to be giving us guidance for visitation for people who have received the vaccine and versus folks who have not," Keeven said. "We haven't received any of that guidance yet, so for the time being we're going to sit still."
She said her grandma lives in a community, so this news is personal for her.
"The vaccine is taking us one step closer to being able to be able to give our loved one's hugs, no have to worry about social distancing, and be able to gather in large groups without being scared they might catch the virus," Keeven said.
Mark Applegate's mother is in a long term care facility in Greene County. He said it has been almost 280 days without really getting to see her in person.
"It's been a long stretch that's for sure," Applegate said. "I would go four or five times and my step-dad went seven times a week and immediately just pull the plug and we couldn't go at all."
For him, the vaccine is welcome news.
"Mixed emotions, it's exciting and a little bit nerve-wracking too," Applegate said. "The big reason why it's exciting for us is that there is more of a potential to visit her."
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