Texas teachers, child care workers now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine
Teachers and child care workers are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in Texas.
Following new federal guidelines, the Department of State Health Services on Tuesday directed vaccine providers to offer shots to “those who work in pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools, as well as Head Start and Early Head Start programs (including teachers, staff, and bus drivers) and those who work as or for licensed child care providers, including center-based and family care providers.”
The announcement comes after President Joe Biden told states to prioritize teachers for the vaccine.
“My challenge to all states, territories, and the District of Columbia is this: We want every educator, school staff member, childcare worker to receive at least one shot by the end of the month of March,” Biden said Tuesday.
The Texas Department of State Health Services received a letter from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday night telling the state to include educators when administering vaccines. DSHS Commissioner John Hellerstedt told providers in letter Wednesday to make the change “immediately.”
“This action does not change the other groups prioritized for vaccination in Texas, and I encourage you to continue your efforts to vaccinate older adults since the burden of COVID-19 falls so severely on people ages 65 and older,” Hellerstedt said in the letter.
Texas’ vaccines have been reserved for health care workers, nursing home residents, those 65 and older, and people with certain medical conditions.
School leaders and education advocates have pushed for teachers to be included among those at the front of the line for the vaccine.
Fort Worth posted on its website that CVS and other pharmacies are registering teachers and staff for shots through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program.
Hellerstedt asked providers to track the number of educators vaccinated to the best of their ability.
Gov. Greg Abbott had shied away from offering a firm date for when all teachers would be eligible for the vaccine. In a Feb. 4 interview with the Star-Telegram, Abbott stressed that teachers could be vaccinated if they qualified based on their age or a medical condition.
Abbott lifted his statewide mask mandate on Tuesday.
The Texas Education Agency said Wednesday that masks are required for students, teachers and staff, with some exceptions, but a school board may change or eliminate the mask requirement.
“Local school boards have full authority to determine their local mask policy,” the agency said in a news release.
The Fort Worth school district said it is continuing its guidelines, including mask-wearing and other COVID-19 safety protocols.
The agency also noted that it’s voluntary for school employees to get the vaccine and that schools currently have not been identified as vaccination sites.
This story was originally published March 3, 2021 at 2:08 PM.
