CHARLESTON, WV (WOAY) – During Wednesday’s briefing, Gov. Justice announced that West Virginia will start offering COVID-19 vaccines to additional state residents beginning immediately.
“We’re going to move more aggressively to try to get more people vaccinated and widen the scope of our vaccination efforts because, at the end of the day, we’re going to start having more vaccines available to us and we want to just keep pushing them out,” Gov. Justice said. “Remember, the last thing we want in West Virginia is to have a bunch of vaccines just sitting on the shelf. So we’re moving as quickly as we possibly can, West Virginia. We continue to run to the fire.”
Vaccinations are now available for all West Virginia residents age 50 and older, all West Virginia education workers from 40 to 50 years old, and all West Virginians age 16 and older with any of the following pre-existing medical conditions:
Down syndrome
Intellectual and developmental disabilities and their caretakers
Caretakers of those with congenital or acquired disease
Organ or bone marrow transplant
Obesity (BMI > 35)
Sickle cell anemia
Cystic fibrosis
Pregnancy
West Virginia Coronavirus Czar Dr. Clay Marsh said during his remarks that West Virginians who now qualify because of the listed medical conditions are encouraged to pre-register at vaccinate.wv.gov or by calling 1-833-734-0965 so officials can ensure that all such individuals are properly prioritized and are able to be vaccinated as efficiently as possible. Dr. Marsh added that the Joint Interagency Task Force for Vaccines will coordinate with health systems across the state to reach out to all individuals with qualifying medical conditions to assist them in scheduling an appointment to be vaccinated.
All West Virginians need to pre-register to receive the vaccine. Individuals with an occupation or pre-existing medical condition that would qualify them for vaccination immediately under the newly expanded allocation protocols should note their occupation or condition upon registration.
West Virginians who are age 65 and older will continue to be prioritized first until all state residents in this age range who desire the vaccine have been vaccinated. Any West Virginians age 65 and older who are still waiting on an appointment are urged to call the West Virginia Vaccine Info Line: 1-833-734-0965 to make sure that providers can schedule your vaccination.
