Oklahoma City-County Health Department Works To Vaccinate Teachers, School Staff

Monday is another milestone for COVID-19 vaccination plans as a new group of Oklahomans are now eligible to get the vaccine.

Kindergarten through 12th-grade teachers and Oklahomans of any age with serious health conditions are eligible to get their shots. This will impact hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans.

Those now eligible due to comorbidities includes anyone with hypertension, obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic lung, liver, or renal disease, and cancers.

Oklahoma Deputy Health Commissioner, Keith Reed says the state is also going to be careful to keep open appointments for earlier groups such as people age 65 and older.

“We’ve got a lot of focus still on our 65-plus population. Just because we open to a new group, we certainly are not closing doors to this group,” says Reed.

Monday The Oklahoma City-County Health Department will be at Douglas High School hosting an event to talk about the new phase and there will be a large vaccine POD.

2,500 COVID-19 vaccine doses are being distributed. 1,200 doses are allocated for Ebenezer Baptist Church residents after their second-dose clinic was rescheduled because of weather and 400 doses are for teachers and staff of Oklahoma City Public Schools.

At 10 a.m., speakers will meet with local media to discuss the new vaccine phase and what this means for Oklahoma’s education system. Reverend Reed is set to comment on vaccine uptake in the northeast community and why he has encouraged his congregation to take it. OKCPS Board Chair Paula Lewis will be on site for comments as well.

Speakers will include, OCCHD Executive Director Dr. Patrick McGough, Oklahoma City Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Sean McDaniel , Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister, Oklahoma Interim Commissioner of Health Dr. Lance Frye and Fairview Missionary Baptist Church Pastor Dr. Rev. JA Reed, Jr.