For months, according to interim Corrections Commissioner James Baker, he’s been lobbying to make Covid-19 vaccinations a priority for his department.
But, at a press conference Thursday, he repeatedly stopped short of saying whether he’s called for all inmates in the state — including those held in the Newport prison hit by a large outbreak this week — to get the shot.
“As the commissioner of corrections, I’m advocating all the time for our system, so that conversation is ongoing,” Baker said. “But so isn’t everybody else out there — teachers, business owners, day care centers — everybody is advocating. The challenge is we’ve got to get more vaccine into the state.”
Baker made the comments at a press conference called over the Covid-19 outbreak at the Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport. The outbreak has put the state’s largest prison on lockdown.
A total of 129 inmates and 10 staff members had been infected at the prison, but no inmates were symptomatic as of Wednesday night, Baker said.
Baker called the outbreak a “crisis” and said the department is taking an “all hands on deck” approach to prevent further spread of the virus. Additional medical staff and mental health counselors have been called into the facility that houses about 350 inmates, he said.
He also said the department does not yet know how the virus got into the prison, and staff members are doing contact tracing, trying to find that answer.
“It’s our experience that in the majority of the cases where we’ve had positives, it’s either someone who enters the system, or it comes in through a staff,” Baker said.
Baker also spoke directly to the inmates’ families.
“To the families of those affected at Northern,” he said, “I want to assure you that we are doing everything we can.”
Later, Baker elaborated on how he has advocated for vaccinating people in the Corrections Department when he meets with other state leaders.
“I don’t want to make it sound like, you know, it’s other than raising the awareness of when can we get in line to get the vaccine,” he said.
Asked if inmates should have been a higher priority, Baker replied, “Everybody should have gotten priority.”
Baker said decisions on prioritization are not easy to make, but he “advocated for my shop.”
But, he added, “I support the decisions that were made.”
The commissioner said that, with the recent federal approval of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the process of vaccinating all Vermont inmates will move faster, now that three vaccines are available.
Currently, inmates and correctional staff can get the Covid-19 vaccine only if they fall within the state’s age-banding guidelines. Baker said Thursday that the outbreak led to cancellation of some vaccinations at the Newport facility for those who are eligible to receive it.
On Tuesday, after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine approval, state officials added correctional officers to the list of eligible vaccine recipients next week, along with people over age 16 with underlying health conditions that make them vulnerable to the virus.
Prisoner rights groups and other advocacy organizations have strongly criticized the state for failing to prioritize prisoners, given the close quarters they live in and the medical conditions many of them face.
James Lyall, executive director of the Vermont chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, has taken the state to task for not acting earlier to vaccinate incarcerated individuals.
“The governor has not taken responsibility for this,” Lyall said Wednesday, “so outbreaks like this are on the governor.”
Baker said Thursday that, as commissioner, he takes seriously the state law that puts inmates in his custody.
He reiterated that, with more vaccines coming into Vermont, more inmates will be vaccinated.
“I’m optimistic over the next several weeks that a big chunk of people inside the system will be vaccinated,” he said, as vaccination age bands are expanded.
That’s not soon enough for Vermont Defender General Matthew Valerio, whose department includes the state Prisoners’ Rights Office.
Valerio said that, given the outbreak at Newport, vaccine priority should be given to Vermont’s inmates, especially with the greater availability of vaccines.
