We bring you another roundup of important vaccine-related news to help cities and their employees make informed decisions regarding COVID-19 vaccinations and learn more about vaccine rollout.

Vaccine eligibility expands to all adults April 15

Governor Inslee announced on March 31 that COVID-19 vaccine eligibility will open up to all adults (age 16 and older) as of April 15. The change adds Washington to a growing number of states expanding eligibility to all adults before May 1, per President Biden’s nationwide vaccine eligibility goals. Gov. Inslee had previously resisted calls to expand eligibility sooner than May 1, but in his announcement he cited increasing case counts in certain regions of the state as one reason to get as many people vaccinated as soon as possible.

The Governor reiterated that vaccinations must be combined with continued public health practices such as masks, social distancing, and hand hygiene to continue to drive COVID-19 case counts down and ultimately end the pandemic. The CDC also continues to recommend virus precautions like masks and social distancing be maintained even as vaccination rates climb to prevent a nationwide “fourth wave” of COVID-19 this spring.

The expansion of eligibility means that all city employees should be eligible for vaccinations after April 15. Those that want a vaccine and are currently eligible (we wrote about who is currently eligible last week) should set their appointments as soon as possible to avoid potentially long waits as eligibility opens up later this month. Due to the upcoming eligibility expansion, the state Department of Health has discontinued the use of the Phase Finder eligibility tool as of April 1, in favor of the “honor system” for determining eligibility for the next several weeks. Eligible city employees can still use the state’s vaccine locator tool to find available vaccine appointments near them.

Pfizer, Moderna vaccines found effective in real world tests

A study of frontline workers released last week has confirmed that both the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines continue to be highly effective at preventing severe illness at least six months after a person is fully vaccinated (i.e. after both doses). It was the first “real-world” test of the effectiveness of the vaccines since they first became available to the public in December. The study looked at around 4,000 frontline workers and first responders that were among the first people to be vaccinated, in December 2020. The study suggests that the first dose of vaccine reduced infection risk by about 80%. Infection risk was reduced by 90% after the second shot.

An ongoing federal study seems to be showing that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are likely to be effective against some of the new COVID-19 variants that have emerged in UK, South Africa, and Brazil. Another study by Pfizer suggests that their vaccine is effective in children ages 12 to 16, an important development to see as schools reopen. Pfizer is continuing to study its vaccine in younger children as well.