Where eligible Coloradans can sign up for COVID-19 vaccines

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DENVER — Governor Jared Polis and officials with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) provided more details about the state’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan in a press conference January 6, including where Coloradans 70 years old and up can sign up for vaccinations.

Polis also extended the statewide mask mandate.

At the time of Governor Polis’ remarks, 129,552 Coloradans had received one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine—mostly front line health care workers.

Colorado is currently in Phase 1A of the vaccine plan, which includes vaccinations for health care workers treating COVID-19 patients and vaccinations for the staff and residents of long-term care facilities.

Right before the new year, Polis announced that essential workers—educators, grocery store employees, and postal workers, to name a few groups—would be moved into Phase 1B along with all Coloradans ages 70 and up.

“Vaccines are truly the gateway to saving lives,” Polis said.

Polis in his Wednesday briefing said that the 70+ population makes up about 78% of the state’s COVID-19 deaths and over a third of its hospitalizations. That age group will be prioritized when Colorado makes it to Phase 1B, which Polis and the CDPHE predict will occur on or around January 15.

About 1.3 million Coloradans are included in Phase 1B:

Jill Hunsaker Ryan, Executive Director of CDPHE, said during the press conference that the state is also working to ensure “equitable distribution” of the COVID-19 vaccine doses. She highlighted survey data that found while 70% of white Coloradans said they would get the COVID-19 vaccine, just 53% of Black Coloradans and 56% of Hispanic Coloradans said the same.

“We know that we must be deliberate about achieving equity, meeting communities where they are –– and addressing vaccine hesitancies that are rooted in historical injustices,” Ryan said.

Finally, the governor announced that Colorado is one of three states making at-home COVID-19 tests available to public and private schools. School systems will have to place orders for the tests called BinaxNOW Tests.

“School districts that opt in to this program will be able to order tests that are shipped directly to the homes of teachers and other school staff,” the governor’s office wrote in a press release. “These tests are available for symptomatic individuals, exposed individuals without symptoms, and for regular surveillance testing.”

Teachers, as noted above, are included in Phase 1B of the vaccination plan, but likely won’t receive a vaccine before the 2020-21 school year.

The CDPHE launched a new web page today to help Coloradans 70 years old and up find where they can sign up for the COVID-19 vaccines. More information is available here.