State Timeline for Vaccinations

APPLE VALLEY CHAMBER NOTE: We were notified by the DEED Commissioner of the timeline for vaccinations. We think this will allow you to plan in your business or organization better with the Governor’s timeline.

FROM THE MN DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT & ECONIMIC DEVELOPMENT:

Today Governor Walz announced the path forward for vaccinating Minnesotans. The path to the end of the pandemic starts with taking care of seniors. We know Minnesotans aged 65+ are among the most vulnerable to serious COVID-19 complications. The plan then is to vaccinate at least 70% of Minnesotans aged 65+ before expanding eligibility to other groups, and we aim to reach this benchmark by the end of March.

After at least 70% of Minnesota seniors are vaccinated, we will expand vaccine eligibility efficiently and safely to other Minnesotans. That includes turning first to essential workers.

The Governor knows how important vaccination is to our economic recovery and is eager to get the vaccine to our workforce as soon as we possibly can. Today’s plan lays out a rough timeline on how that will happen.

By April, vaccines will be available to Minnesotans with medical conditions that put them in the most extreme high-risk category if they get COVID-19, and certain frontline workers who are most at risk of contracting the virus.
By May, the vaccine will be available for Minnesotans with other medical conditions that put them at heightened risk, additional frontline essential workers and Minnesotans 50+ living in multi-generational housing.
By late spring, the vaccine will be available for Minnesotans age 18 and older with medical conditions, all adults age 50-64, and all other essential workforces.
Beginning this summer, all Minnesotans will have access to the vaccine.

The state has made tremendous progress in vaccinating our most vulnerable population. As of Thursday, Minnesota has vaccinated more than 43% of Minnesotans aged 65 and over. Severe illness and death in our long-term care settings have plummeted as we vaccinated these most at-risk Minnesotans: deaths are down 97% from their November peak, and cases are down 89%.

Nearly 90% of COVID-19 deaths in Minnesota have come from those aged 65 and over. In January, following relaxed federal guidance, Governor Walz directed healthcare providers to begin vaccinating this group of Minnesotans, ensuring maximum impact for the small number of vaccines the state receives each week.

The state has built a network of providers to get shots to seniors, including healthcare providers, federally qualified health centers, retail pharmacies, local public health, and state-run community sites to provide vaccination coverage for the whole state.

The state has developed an expansive infrastructure for vaccinating efficiently and equitably, and every Minnesotan who wants a vaccine will have the opportunity to get one as supply increases in the coming months.

Minnesota will move forward with phases of vaccine eligibility based on science, medical evidence, and federal guidance.

Anticipated timelines for phases are subject to change as vaccine supply from the federal government is adjusted in the coming weeks. Details on these vaccination phases are available on the COVID-19 Response website’s Who’s Getting Vaccinated page. Information about how those groups will get vaccinated will be shared in the coming weeks. All Minnesotans should sign up for the Vaccine Connector to stay informed on their eligibility and get connected to vaccine opportunities once they become eligible.

Demand for the COVID-19 vaccine still far exceeds supply: the weekly supply of vaccine allocated to Minnesota is less than a single percentage point of the number of doses needed to vaccinate all Minnesotans. As we await more vaccine supply from the federal government, Minnesotans need to remain vigilant by wearing a mask, social distancing, getting a test if they have symptoms, and staying home if sick.

We know you may have questions about this plan, so we’re hosting a special webinar for business leaders tomorrow, February 26 at 9:30 a.m. I invite you to join Joanna Dornfeld, a director on vaccine rollout from the Department of Health, and myself to walk through the details and answer your questions.

You can join the webinar tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. through this link and send in your questions in advance through this form.

What we do in the next few months will determine how quickly we accelerate inclusive economic growth in Minnesota. We know how important this is to our business community and look forward to working with you on the journey ahead.