Group 4 is now eligible for the vaccine. See if you qualify

ROCKINGHAM – Local medical providers are now accepting people included in Group 4 for vaccination appointments.

On March 17, North Carolina opened vaccine eligibility for Group 4, which includes anyone between the ages of 16 and 64 with high-risk medical conditions that increase the risk of serious illness from COVID-19. Richmond County Health Department’s FirstHealth and Operation FirstShot will also continue to schedule those in Groups 1, 2 and 3.

Anyone in group 1, 2, 3 or 4 who wishes to be vaccinated should call (910) 417-3030 to make an appointment. Be prepared to leave a voicemail message with your name, date of birth, email address, and a phone number where you can be reached. A representative of the hospital or health service will call you back within five working days to make an appointment while stocks of vaccine are exhausted.

The high-risk medical conditions that make a person eligible for group 4 are:

• Asthma (moderate to severe)

• Cancer

• Cerebrovascular disease or history of stroke

• Chronic kidney disease

• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)

• Cystic fibrosis

• Type 1 or 2 diabetes

• Heart disease such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy

• Hypertension or arterial hypertension

• Immunosuppressed state (weakened immune system) due to: immune deficiencies, HIV, chronic use of steroids or other drugs that weaken the immune system, history of solid organ blood or bone marrow transplant

• Intellectual and developmental disabilities, including Down syndrome

• Liver disease, including hepatitis

• Neurological disorders, such as dementia and schizophrenia

• Pulmonary fibrosis

• Overweight or obese

• Pregnancy

• Sickle cell disease (excluding the sickle cell trait) or thalassemia

• Smoking (current or past, defined as having smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime)

The following people from groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 are eligible:

• People aged 65 and over

• Health workers

• School staff

• Daycare workers

• Essential frontline workers (critical manufacturing, groceries, education, food and agriculture, government and community services, public safety and transportation, those who work face to face with customers)

• Adults at high risk of exposure and at increased risk of serious illness from COVID-19, such as cancer, asthma, kidney disease, COPD, severe heart disease, sickle cell anemia, type 2 diabetes, obesity, smoking, among others, whatever their lifestyle situation.

In addition, people who are homeless or living in a homeless shelter, and those in a correctional facility are also eligible.

Eligibility of essential workers

Those working in the essential sectors identified in group 3 that did not meet the first line criteria. Critical sectors identified in cluster 3 include critical manufacturing, education, essential goods, food and agriculture, government and community services, healthcare and public health, public safety, and transportation .

Those who work in additional core sectors as defined below:

• Chemistry (including workers in petrochemical plants, agricultural chemicals, pharmaceutical facilities, consumer products)

• Commercial facilities (including retail employees, hotel employees)

• Communications and information technology (service repair dispatchers, data center operators)

• Defense industrial base (including workers supporting essential services to meet national security commitments)

• Energy (including electricity, petroleum, natural gas and propane workers)

• Financial services (including workers who maintain financial transaction processing systems, workers necessary to provide consumers with access to banking and lending services)

• Hazardous materials (including workers at nuclear facilities, workers who manage medical waste)

• Hygiene products and services (including laundromats, sanitation workers)

• Public works and infrastructure support services (including plumbers, electricians, exterminators, workers supporting parks)

• Residential equipment, housing and real estate

• Water and wastewater (including water board staff, wastewater treatment facilities, water sampling and monitoring)

MRH-Richmond is currently administering the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, which requires two doses. The second dose will be given approximately 28 days after the first dose. FirstHealth and the Department of Health will schedule a second vaccine when beneficiaries receive the first.

Be prepared to wait up to 30 minutes after vaccination. All vaccinated people will be monitored for any side effects by hospital staff. Patients are asked to arrive on time for your appointment and not earlier.

Officials from FirstHealth and the Richmond Health Department stressed that vaccine supplies are extremely limited. Ongoing clinics, which will be by appointment only, will depend on state vaccine allocations.