Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The New Mexico Department of Health on Friday announced distribution plans for the next three phases for the COVID-19 vaccine that currently includes the elderly, those with high-risk medical conditions, frontline essential workers and nursing home residents.
The agency last week also announced its hotline now offers support for questions about COVID-19 vaccine registration.
The department stated New Mexico moved into Phase 1B of vaccinations. That means the vaccine will be available to residents in this sequence:
• Individuals age 75 and older;
• Individuals age 16 or older with underlying medical conditions that place them at greater risk from COVID-19;
• Frontline essential workers who cannot work remotely;
• Vulnerable populations (residents of congregate care settings).
Individuals in Phase 1A — primarily high to medium-risk medical workers — can continue to schedule vaccinations as well.
Phase 1C, which is anticipated to begin in the spring, includes people age 60 and older and other essential workers who cannot work remotely.
Phase 2, anticipated by summer, includes remaining members of the general public.
Residents who have questions or would like support with vaccine registration — including those who do not have internet access — can dial 1-855-600-3453, press option 0 for vaccine questions, then option 4 for tech support.
Users with other vaccine-related questions can call 1-855-600-3453 and press option 0.
About 400,000 New Mexico residents already have registered for the vaccine at the state’s website at https://cvvaccine.nmhealth.org. Users there create a profile, enter their health and other information and wait to receive notification when vaccine is available to them from local healthcare providers.
Dr. Tracie Collins, Secretary-Designate of the Department of Health, said during a briefing Monday more than 170,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been delivered to about health providers in the state.
Collins said about 78,000 doses but only 81% of health providers had reported inoculations to the agency, so the actual number likely is higher.
She noted New Mexico has one of the best COVID-19 vaccination administration rates in the country.
Collins said last week the state was finishing its current stage in giving shots to healthcare providers and would begin the next stage of vaccine administration “very soon,” likely in late January. Giving shots to residents over 75 years old would be high priority, she said.
Collins also said the agency made a technical fix in its computer system to prevent “line jumpers” from getting the vaccine early. Participants in Expo New Mexico received a special-event code so they could get the vaccine before they were supposed to do so.
Regarding the Vault saliva test for COVID-19, Collins said 10,000 of the home-delivered tests had been requested by New Mexico residents.
“We’re doing really good with our testing capacity,” she said.
