Healthline Features COVID-19 Vaccination Advice from Premise Health President Jami Doucette

In a conversation with Healthline, Premise Health President Jami Doucette, MD, MBA, CSCS, addressed why distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine has gotten off to a slow and uneven start. As infection and death rates from COVID-19 continue to climb, many people are eager to get vaccinated against the disease. However, the federal government has given primary responsibility for COVID-19 vaccination to individual states, each of which is taking its own approach.

“The vaccine phases are being defined and applied differently not only state to state, but also county by county,” said Dr. Doucette. The government has been advising states to prioritize the vaccination of healthcare workers and people who live or work in long-term care facilities. In states where vaccine eligibility has widened to include older adults, some eligible people may still find it challenging to get vaccinated right away.

To learn what information is available about when, where, and how to get the vaccine, Doucette recommends community members start by checking guidance published by their local and state health departments. This information could be found on health department websites, shared in daily news conferences, or even posted to Twitter.

Read more from Healthline about why it’s so difficult for eligible people to locate a COVID-19 vaccine right now.