How Southwest Florida is handling widening eligibility for COVID-19 vaccine

As the age requirements begin to drop for the COVID-19 vaccine, demand is going up. Starting Monday, anyone 40 and older can get vaccinated; the week after that, anyone 18 and older can get a shot. That second age group is the one that will pose some unique challenges.

Charlotte County reached a major milestone this week, vaccinating close to 60% of people 50 and older. Lee County vaccinated roughly over 175,000 people in that same age range, Collier County around 110,000. Each week, Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced a new age group opening.

WINK News asked Dr. Joseph Pepe, director of the Florida Department of Health in Charlotte County, why these expansions are being done in such quick succession. Pepe says these decisions are all data-driven, and a big reason is the decline in COVID-19 cases.

“What it really comes down to is, who is at risk, what our hospitalization and death rates look like and who are our most vulnerable?” Pepe said. “Another thing that we look at is, how were the cases going, who is getting sick, who is not getting sick, and using that data to identify targeted populations and age groups as well.”

The FDOH-Charlotte says that the adoption rate of vaccines for the younger population has been pretty low since the H1N1 virus. On top of getting more people the shot, the department will also be educating young people on why they should receive it.

“The challenge that you have when you get to younger populations is that they’re working full-time, have family commitments and things like that,” Pepe said. One way to encourage their vaccination is “really making yourself available, so that they don’t have to miss work, and they can come in on breaks and things like that.”