BATON ROUGE (AP) — With states receiving steady supplies of coronavirus vaccine, Gov. John Bel Edwards on Thursday further expanded eligibility to a long list of healthy essential workers in Louisiana who don’t have one of the two dozen medical conditions that already provided access to the shots.
As the Democratic governor announced the widened eligibility, the state also kicked off an outreach campaign aimed at getting vaccines to people in underserved areas and persuading those who are skeptical — as the state continues to see available, unused appointments for its vaccine doses.
The new immunization eligibility rules, which take effect Monday, will include workers at grocery stores, bars, restaurants and colleges. That’s expected to be the last expansion of access before Edwards throws open vaccinations to all adults around the state. Already, most of the adult population is expected to meet one of the eligibility criteria on the books.
Edwards widened access earlier this month to anyone 16 and older who has among two dozen high-risk medical conditions, people who are overweight and smokers. In addition, schoolteachers, daycare workers, health care employees, first responders, nursing home residents and many others already had been able to seek immunizations.
Starting Monday, that list will grow to people who work at agricultural sites, restaurants, bars, colleges, post offices, manufacturing facilities, grocery stores, utility companies, construction sites, banks and veterinarian offices. Judges and their staff, public transit workers, river pilots, clergy, communications workers, people in the media and security staff all will be eligible.
More than 21% of the state’s total population has received at least the first dose of vaccine regimens that often require two doses, according to state health department data. Nearly 569,000 people have been fully immunized. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses, while the Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires only one shot.
But Louisiana continues to lag many other states in distributing its doses. It ranked 40th among states Thursday in the number of vaccine doses administered per capita, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A new campaign from Louisiana’s health department, with the hashtag #SleevesUp, aims to bolster access and increase those vaccination numbers around the state.
Organizations will knock on doors and make phone calls providing information about the shots, urging people to get vaccinated and helping people to sign up for immunization appointments. They’ll look for barriers to vaccine access, such as transportation, and try to remove them. And they’ll try to build confidence in the vaccines.
New community vaccination events will be rolled out in April targeting areas where fewer people have gotten the shots. Church leaders and local businesses will help spread the word about vaccine sites and availability.
“One-way communication and guidance just aren’t going to cut it when it comes to reaching our underserved, on-the-fence and hard-to-reach communities,” Health Department Secretary Courtney Phillips said in a statement. “We have to be creative, collaborative, even a little unconventional.”
Among the 17 organizations that will partner with the state on the outreach efforts are AARP, the AFL-CIO, the Hispanic Health Equity Task Force, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus, the LSU Ag Center and NAACP. Several health care organizations representing hospitals, pharmacies and clinics also are among those participating.
“Distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine is a critical component for Louisiana as we work to reopen our businesses and rebuild our economy,” Stephen Waguespack, president of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, said in a statement.
Rep. Ted James, chairman of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus, said the grassroots campaign is modeled after get-out-the-vote efforts for elections.
The state has been holding large community vaccination events at convention and civic centers, sports stadiums, fairgrounds and other sites to more quickly immunize people and reach into areas that might have less access.
By AP reporter Melinda Deslatte
