Nursing homes ready for COVID-19 vaccine, but questions of receiving it remain

Reporter: Andrea Guerrero Writer: Jack Lowenstein
Published: Updated:
Credit: WINK News.

Long-term care facilities in Florida are ready for the coronavirus vaccine rollout, but those facilities will only get enough to vaccinate about 40,000 people in the first round.

Nursing homes we spoke to Friday were unsure if they would be included in the first phase of the vaccine in the state, and nothing will likely become official until after the vaccine is on its way to Florida.

Steffanie Servellon is the wellness director at Atrium Liberty Park in Cape Coral. She believes the COVID-19 vaccine will be a game changer for the people who live in the long-term care facility.

“The risk of the vaccine is nothing compared to the risk of actually not getting the vaccine,” Servellon said. “Our residents, they have gone through so much.”

How many doses of the vaccine will atrium receive? How will administrators determine who gets the vaccine?

Those are two question among many without concrete answers.

“We sent out a letter to the families, educating them about the importance of getting the vaccine and letting them know that they do have the option to take it or not to take it,” Servellon said.

“Providers have been battling this for 10 months,” said Nick van der Linden, the director of communications at Leading Age Florida. “They’ve been fighting this war, and this vaccine is really a ray of light and is really another weapon in their arsenal to combat the virus.”

The state is relying on CVS and Walgreens to vaccinate people in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

Gov. Ron DeSantis also has a strike team ready to help with the state’s most vulnerable citizens.

CVS and Walgreens are expected to begin reaching out to nursing homes and other long-term care facilities next week to begin answering those questions like who gets the vaccine and when.

“It’s been clear. It’s been shown that the elderly population is the most susceptible to this virus, and subsequently, it’s important to get the vaccination to the staff,” van der Linden said. “They are providing intimate care to these residents.”

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.