New age groups opening Saturday, April 17 for vaccine registration
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State officials announced at Friday’s press conference that Vermonters who are age 16, 17 and 18 can make appointments for the COVID-19 vaccine starting tomorrow (Saturday, April 17) at 10 a.m.
In addition, on Monday, April 19, all remaining age groups - from age 16 and up - will be able to make vaccine appointments as originally planned, but at an earlier time than usual — starting online at 6 a.m.
The 16-18 age group was moved up two days ahead of schedule to allow 16- and 17-year-olds greater opportunity to get appointments for the Pfizer vaccine, which is the only vaccine they can receive. Eighteen-year-olds can get Pfizer or Moderna, but were included in the group since many are high school seniors, officials said.
“As you know, I’ve made getting kids back into school a priority,” said Governor Phil Scott. “This step will help give those kids the opportunity to register for Pfizer doses a bit earlier, which is their only vaccine option at this time, and possibly enjoy the end of the school year in a more normal way.”
Help us spread the word about these changes, especially if you have a teenager in your life!
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Johnson & Johnson vaccine clinics cancelled through Friday, April 23
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State officials announced Thursday that Vermont will follow the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and extend the pause on the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine for an additional week. The federal pause is in place to allow the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices the time it needs to gather more data about reported side effects. The committee will meet again next week.
This means that all Vermont Johnson & Johnson appointments will be cancelled through Friday, April 23. Anyone who had an appointment cancelled through the state registration system should call 855-722-7878. The Health Department is working hard to open as many additional appointments as possible for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines and expects everyone impacted by this pause will be able to get an appointment by the end of April.
Approximately 5,800 Vermont appointments were impacted by the newly extended pause (April 13 through April 23). As soon as the CDC made its announcement on Tuesday, the department began working to proactively reach out to everyone who had an appointment to receive the J&J vaccine. The majority of these have been addressed in some way, including by many people making their own scheduling changes online or by contacting our Vaccine Call Center.
People who made appointments with CVS or Walgreens should follow the pharmacies’ instructions about rescheduling. Anyone who prefers to make a new appointment through the state registration system can call the Health Department at 855-722-7878. Please be sure you have only one appointment scheduled.
All two-dose (Pfizer and Moderna) vaccine appointments will continue as previously scheduled.
The CDC and the Food & Drug Administration recommended the pause on Tuesday, after six cases were reported in the U.S. of a rare and severe type of blood clot in individuals who had received the J&J vaccine. The pause will also allow time for health care providers to receive and understand guidance and information on how to recognize and treat such patients appropriately, and to report any further severe events they may be seeing in people who have received the J&J vaccine.
“We know it may be difficult to hear about more uncertainty right now, but this is science at work,” said Health Commissioner Mark Levine, MD. “This extreme caution is being taken to make sure we have all the information needed as we move forward in our vaccination efforts safely.”
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Information about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine pause in multiple languages
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Visit our Multilingual Resources web page to find new videos about the pause in use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, created by the Multilingual Task Force. Written materials are also available in Spanish.
The videos are available in Spanish, Arabic, Burmese, French, Kirundi, Maay Maay, Nepali, Somali, Swahili, and Vietnamese. They are also available on the Multilingual Task Force’s YouTube page.
Feel free to share with community partners who may find them useful!
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Health Commissioner, Mark Levine, MD, on COVID-19 vaccines
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Commissioner, Mark Levine, MD, addresses common questions about the COVID-19 vaccine, including side effects, safety, and his reasons for getting vaccinated.
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Know Vermont's new travel guidance
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As part of Vermont's phased reopening plan, there is new travel guidance (effective April 9, 2021).
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Prevent the spread of COVID-19. Get tested.
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With variants of the COVID-19 virus circulating throughout the state, following basic prevention steps is more important than ever. You can protect yourself and your community by getting tested.
Remember that symptoms can sometimes be mild, such as a headache, cough, fatigue or a runny nose. So, if you have even just one of these symptoms, it’s best to get tested. It’s also important to avoid going to work, school or other places until you receive a negative result. COVID-19 is a highly transmissible virus, and this is how we can each protect our loved ones and our communities.
If you have symptoms, talk to your health care provider. They can refer you for testing.
Even if you don’t have symptoms, you can still have COVID-19 and not feel sick. If you don’t have symptoms and want to get tested, there are many test sites now available around the state. It’s free and easy!
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Who are those hard-working public health staff working to respond to the pandemic? Meet them!
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In January 2020, the Health Department activated its Health Operations Center to address an emerging concern that would become the global COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, hundreds of Health staff — with support from our state and community partners — have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to keep Vermonters safe, supported, and informed.
Visit our newest web page to meet some of the state’s public health heroes who have shown exemplary service to their teams and Vermonters during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many, many more staff members who have quietly given everything they have to this response every day. We wish we could recognize them all!
To all Vermonters from your Health Department staff – thank you for the sacrifices you have made this past year. We here for you and in this with you.
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Additional resources about vaccination & more
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Take care of your emotional and mental health
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If you or someone you know is in crisis or needs emotional support, help is available 24/7:
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279,422 (51%) Vermonters have received a least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
- 186,511 (34.1%) Vermonters have completed their COVID-19 vaccine.
Check out our Weekly Data Summary for an in-depth look at COVID-19 in Vermont, including demographics of people who test positive, outbreaks, and reported symptoms, hospitalizations and deaths.
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