School and child care personnel now eligible to be vaccinated

The Texas Department of State Health Services today notified all vaccine providers that they should immediately include school and child care workers in vaccine administration.

Last night, DSHS received a letter from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services directing states to expand eligibility to include people who work in school and child care operations. The federal directive defined the people eligible as “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.”

This action does not change the other groups prioritized for vaccination in Texas. Providers are encouraged to continue their efforts to vaccinate older adults since the burden of COVID-19 falls most severely on people age 65 and older.

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(News Media Contact: pressofficer@dshs.texas.gov)