NC teachers in line to get COVID vaccine. But students will be waiting for a while.
North Carolina public school employees are expected to get COVID-19 vaccinations in the coming months, but state health officials say it’s unclear when K-12 students will get their shots.
Some North Carolina counties began this week the phase of COVID-19 vaccinations that will include school employees once shots are given to people who are age 75 and over.
But state officials say they can’t guarantee that K-12 students will get their shots before the start of next school year.
“We get asked the question a lot are kids going to be able to get vaccinated before the next academic year, and the answer right now is whether we can do that depends on the clinical trials that are right now planned or underway,” Dr. Charlene Wong, a chief health officer at DHHS, said at Thursday’s State Board of Education meeting.
Two COVID-19 vaccines have been approved for use in the U.S. None have been approved yet for use for children under age 16.
Wong said clinical trials in the U.S. are enrolling children down to age 12. A trial in the United Kingdom has been approved for children down to age 5.
Children are less at risk of COVID than adults. But when it becomes available for children, Wong said parents should get their children vaccinated.
“COVID-19 can cause very serious illness in children and also because children can pass the virus along to others, including vulnerable adults that they might live with,” said Wong, a pediatrician.
Educators want vaccinations
In the meantime, teachers around the state have been clamoring to get their COVID vaccinations. Some have said that schools shouldn’t offer in-person classes until teachers are vaccinated.
Wong said that vaccine supplies will be limited for some time, so the state has prioritized who gets them first. Ultimately everyone who wants to be vaccinated will get one, Wong said, but it will be a few months before doses will become widely available.
The first set of shots have gone to health-care workers and staff and residents at long-term care facilities.
Some counties have moved to the next stage, which is anyone age 75 or older. Once that group is done, healthcare workers and frontline essential workers who are age 50 or older would get vaccinated.
The next group would be healthcare workers and frontline essential workers of any age.
Education staff are considered frontline essential workers. This group also includes people such as corrections officers and grocery store employees.
Wong said frontline essential workers will have a variety of options for when and where to get their shot. Information will also be available at YourSpotYourShot.nc.gov.
Wake County Superintendent Cathy Moore said earlier this week that it could take some time before all educators are vaccinated.
Higher vaccine priority urged for teachers
School staff should have higher priority to help speed up school reopening, according to Harnett County Superintendent Aaron Fleming.
“I appreciate the work being done by our state leaders as it pertains to vaccinations, but I believe the pace should increase to reopen our schools’ doors,” Fleming said in a statement this week. “Please join me in supporting an increased vaccination priority for our state’s education professionals.
“While we will not require staff vaccinations, we must offer them immediately so that we may turn the corner as we close in on a year of this pandemic.”
Susan Gale-Perry, DHHS chief deputy secretary, said student-teachers will get vaccinated at the same time as other teachers. College students across the state are teaching in schools in preparation for becoming teachers after graduation.
School employees other than teachers are also in the frontline essential workers category.
“We’re talking about folks who are working on site where they cannot be six feet apart from other people, which is certainly the case for educators,” Gale-Perry said. “ But it’s not just teachers. It’s other support staff that work in our education setting.”
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 1:24 PM.
