Gov. Phil Scott is standing by his position against the widespread vaccination of Vermont incarcerated individuals “as soon as possible,” despite calls to do so from an advisory panel responsible for making recommendations to his administration.
“There has not been a change; they will be vaccinated like anybody else, with the age banding,” Scott said during a press conference Friday.
Scott’s comments come after the Vermont Covid-19 Vaccine Implementation Advisory Committee sent a letter this week to the state health commissioner, Dr. Mark Levine, urging that inmates across Vermont’s correctional facilities be vaccinated “as soon as possible.”
Currently in Vermont, incarcerated individuals are eligible for vaccination only when they fall within the state’s required age bands or have a qualifying medical condition.
However, in guidance issued last month, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it “recommends the Covid-19 vaccine for staff at correctional and detention facilities because these staff are at higher risk of exposure to Covid-19 in the workplace.”
Vermont’s largest prison, the Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport, has been in the midst of a Covid-19 outbreak since late last month, with a total of 175 inmates contracting coronavirus as of the latest test results reported earlier this week.
One inmate is currently hospitalized “out of an abundance of caution” as a result of the outbreak, Mike Smith, head of the Agency of Human Services, said at Friday’s press conference.
Smith also said there are two “theories” on how the prison’s Covid outbreak came about. He said the virus could have come into the facility through an infected correctional officer coming into work — and it spread from there.
Another theory, he said, is that it has spread through inmates diverting medication used to treat substance misuse. According to Smith, this Covid spread theory goes like this: An inmate is given medication he puts in his mouth but doesn’t swallow. That medication is later sold to another inmate.
Scott doubled down Friday on his position that vaccinating by age bands makes the most sense, because older people are at higher risk of poor outcomes from Covid-19.
The governor also announced new age banding eligibility in April for all Vermonters. By April 19, all adults will be eligible to sign up for vaccination. He cautioned that does not mean they would receive a shot by April 19, but will be able to sign up for a time to get it.
As for prisoners, Vermont has 1,239 inmates, including 168 held in an out-of-state prison in Mississippi.
Currently, according to Smith, 77 in-state inmates have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and next week about 90 more will receive at least one dose.
Also, Smith said, 78 Vermonters serving their sentences in Mississippi prisons have been vaccinated, and the administration is working to make sure all Vermont inmates there are vaccinated.
