Pandemic Vaccine News & Updates
February 8, 2021
• Ohio launching new Vaccine Management Solution (VMS) – The VMS, rolling out to providers on a staggered schedule this week, will help Ohioans determine COVID-19 vaccine eligibility and offer streamlined scheduling, eliminating the need to make numerous phone calls or visit numerous websites. Public access to the web-based program is forthcoming. More details are available on this VMS Provider Training page.
Advantages of the program include:
• Ohio VMS is a state-supported solution at no cost to vaccine providers.
• It offers vaccine providers a consistent approach for scheduling vaccinations.
• Ohio VMS offers more visibility to the public around how to get their vaccinations.
• The more providers who opt into this program, the more helpful it will be for the public. This solution is maximized by the number of providers participating and is designed to offer a one-stop resource for Ohioans.
• Process announced for medical disorders group beginning Feb. 15 -As a part of Ohio’s Phase 1B vaccinations, the group becoming eligible beginning the week of Feb. 15 with specific qualifying medical conditions will be permitted to be vaccinated by the provider of their choice. As we open up to this population, we ask that providers do their best to actively identify this population from existing patients while also making vaccine available to those who self-identify as having one of the conditions listed in the Phase 1B Medical Conditions sheet. This list should be published on your website and be used to verbally confirm that a patient meets the eligibility requirement. The State of Ohio is not requiring any additional documentation or proof of eligibility; however, providers may develop their own screening and monitoring procedures to evaluate eligibility.
• Save the date for Ohio’s COVID-19 Vaccine Town Halls – Ohioans can hear from medical experts, community leaders, public health professionals, frontline workers , and people who have been vaccinated. More details for how to watch livestreams for the following audiences will be shared in the near future:
• Monday, Feb. 22, 6:30 p.m. -African American Ohioans
• Tuesday, Feb. 23, 6:30 p.m. – Hispanic/Latino Ohioans
• Monday, March 1, 6:30 p.m. – Asian American and Pacific Islander Ohioans
• Tuesday, March 2, 6:30 p.m. – Rural Ohioans
• Ohio administers more than 1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine -Although vaccines are still scarce, Ohio’s strategic phased approach has allowed vaccine to be administered to more than one million residents. Among these early groups to be vaccinated are Ohio’s most vulnerable populations, such as nursing home residents and older Ohioans, who account for the highest number of COVID-19 related deaths. A review of vaccines administered the last few weeks is below:
Week First Doses Administered Second Doses Administered
Jan. 11 -17, 2021 138,361 24,121
Jan. 18 – 24, 2021 201,872 53,865
Jan. 25 – 31, 2021 217,317 111,930
• Updated Target Population/Occupation Checklists – Please share the updated TP/O Checklist and TP/O Codes documents with your Information Technology (IT) department if system modifications are necessary.
• Johnson & Johnson has submitted EUA application – Johnson & Johnson’s single dose COVID-19 vaccine will be considered by the FDA on Feb. 26, and if approved, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) would meet shortly thereafter , and Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccines could begin being used in the
U.S. The federal government has contracted with J&J to deliver 100 million doses of its vaccine by the end of June, if it is approved.