Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Lamont announces membership of COVID vaccine advisory group

  • Health
  • by Ana Radelat
  • October 9, 2020
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"

The advisory panel includes three subgroups: allocation, communication and science.

Gov. Ned Lamont on Friday announced the members of a new advisory group tasked with deciding  who in the state will be first to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, if and when one is approved by the federal government.

The dozens of individuals on the new panel represent a broad range of interests. They include members of the General Assembly, epidemiologists, academics, church leaders, labor leaders, doctors and health care providers, representatives of labor and business – including the health insurance industry and the state’s long-term care facilities – and even a college student.

The COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Group is co-chaired by Deidre Gifford, the commissioner of the Connecticut departments of public health and social services; and Reginald Eadie, CEO of Trinity Health. According to the announcement released by the governor, there will be 21 members of a main advisory board. Some of these members – and others – will serve on three subcommittees.

Deidre Gifford

One will focus on the safety of the federal approval process and science behind the vaccine, while another will advise the governor on how to distribute and allocate the vaccine. The third panel will focus on marketing and advertising to get information about the vaccine to the public.

A COVID-19 vaccine has not yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration and Drug Administration, although four pharmaceutical companies — Pfizer, Astra-Zeneca, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson — are in the final stages of their clinical trials and one or more vaccines could be approved for use by the end of the year.

The Trump administration’s “Operation Warp Speed” plan aims to rush any vaccine that is deemed safe and effective  to the states as soon as possible, perhaps with the help of the military. The standard for effectiveness is one that prevents a COVID infection at least 50% of the time.

The administration has pressed the states for their distribution plans and provided about $200 million in grants for this purpose. Connecticut received a $2.4 million grant, money that will be used to pay All Clear, a consulting group that will help the state decide which pharmacies, hospitals, health centers and other sites will receive the vaccine.

States have been given an Oct. 16 deadline to submit this distribution plan to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Reginald Eadie MD

The governor’s new panel, however, is unlikely to be involved in this phase of vaccine distribution planning. His announcement said a schedule of meetings for the advisory panel “has not yet been finalized,” but that the group hopes to hold its first meeting “in mid-October.”

Before the vaccine can be distributed, states must decide who will be  first-in-line to be inoculated. Initial supplies of the vaccine will be scarce, distributed to states based on population and a few other factors. The new panel will advise the governor on that aspect of vaccine distribution.

Eadie recently told the Connecticut Mirror that the advisory group will follow the guidelines set by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), but may have to modify those recommendations.

He  said the panel is likely to prioritize “based on risks… first responders, the elderly, the vulnerable communities or populations.”

In a separate interview, Gifford told the Mirror “one of the reasons why the governor wanted to have this advisory group is that we anticipate that even within those broad categories (established by the federal government) we’ll have to make some local decisions.”

No special favors

“If it turns out, as it probably will, that there are not going to be enough vaccines for everybody on day one, we’re going to have to have some strategy for distribution and administration of the vaccine. And we don’t want people to suspect that somebody got a special favor in that process,” she said.

Meanwhile, the CDC has reached out to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the National Academy of Medicine for help in determining who should be first in line for a COVID-19 vaccine.

Last month, those organizations released a draft proposal that recommended the vaccine be distributed in four phases, with health care workers and vulnerable Americans, including the elderly and those with underlying health conditions, going to the front of the line. Those in the first phase of the distribution plan would account for about 15% of the population, the draft report said.

Phase two would include essential workers, teachers, residents of homeless shelters, and those living in prisons, jails and detention centers. All older adults not included in phase one would be vaccinated in phase two.

Phase three would include young adults, children and workers in industries “essential to the functioning of society” and who are at risk of exposure to the virus. About 85% to 95% of the country would be vaccinated by the end of phase three, the report said. Phase four would include everyone not covered in the previous phases.

The members of the Governor’s COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Group include:
Main advisory group
  • Co-Chair: Dr. Deidre Gifford, Acting Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Health
  • Co-Chair: Dr. Reginald J. Eadie, President and CEO of Trinity Health of New England
  • Mary Daugherty Abrams, State Senator (D-Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall, Middletown, Cheshire)
  • Jessica Abrantes-Figueiredo, Chief of Infectious Diseases for Saint Francis Hospital
  • Stephen Civitelli, Director of Health for the Wallingford Health Department
  • Chris DiPentima, President and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association
  • Josh Elliott, State Representative (D-Hamden)
  • Tekisha Dwan Everette, Executive Director of Health Equity Connecticut
  • Keith Grant, Senior System Director for Infection Prevention for Hartford HealthCare
  • Eileen Healy, Executive Director of Independence Northwest for the Connecticut Cross-Disability Lifespan Alliance and Chair of the Connecticut Association of Centers for Independent Living
  • Derrick Holloway, Pastor of First Calvary Baptist Church
  • Sal Luciano, President of the Connecticut AFL-CIO
  • Richard Martinello, Medical Director of Infection Prevention for Yale New Haven Hospital and Yale New Haven Health
  • Mag Morelli, President of LeadingAge Connecticut
  • Nichelle Mullins, President and CEO of Charter Oak Health Center
  • William Petit, State Representative (R-New Britain, Plainville)
  • Jason Schwartz, Assistant Professor at the Yale School of Public Health
  • Milagrosa Seguinot, President of the Connecticut Community Health Workers Association
  • Michelle Seagull, Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection
  • Heather Somers, State Senator (R-Griswold, Groton, North Stonington, Plainfield, Preston, Sterling, Stonington, Voluntown)
Allocation subgroup
  • Michael Carius, American College of Emergency Physicians
  • Stephen Civitelli, Director of Health for the Wallingford Health Department
  • Kerry Clark, UConn Health
  • Tekisha Dwan Everette, Executive Director of Health Equity Connecticut
  • Lori Fedewa, Director of the Connecticut State Office of Rural Health
  • Khuram Ghumman, President of the Hartford County Medical Association
  • Tim Klufas, college student
  • Suzanne Lagarde, CEO of Fair Haven Community Health Center
  • Zita Lazzarini, UConn Health
  • Andrew Mais, Commissioner of the Connecticut Insurance Department
  • Sara Parker McKernan, New Haven Legal Assistance
  • Leslie Miller, President of the Fairfield County Medical Association
  • Nichelle Mullins, President and CEO of Charter Oak Health Center
  • Neil O’Leary, Mayor of the City of Waterbury
  • Regina Rush-Kittle, Deputy Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection
  • Marlene Schwartz, President of the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity
  • Michelle Seagull, Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection
  • Raymond Sullivan, Director of Health for the Brookfield Health Department
Communications subgroup
  • Mary Daugherty Abrams, State Senator (D-Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall, Middletown, Cheshire)
  • Robyn Anderson, Reverend
  • Matt Barrett, President and CEO of the Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities
  • John Brady, American Federation of Teachers
  • Hector Caraballo, Pastor of Casa de Oracion y Adoracion
  • Angel Castellano, Pastor of Smirna Misionera Church
  • Yolanda Castillo, Secretary of the Town of Manchester Board of Directors
  • Lindsay E. Curtis, Pastor of Grace Baptist Church
  • Chris DiPentima, President and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association
  • Tiffany Donelson, President and CEO of Connecticut Health Foundation
  • Brad Drazen, Vice President of Communications and Marketing for the Hartford Foundation
  • Taylor Edelman, Equipty and Community Engagement Coordinator for Apex Community Care
  • Josh Elliott, State Representative (D-Hamden)
  • Michael Freda, First Selectman of North Haven and President of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities
  • Judy Goldberg, Vice President of Government Relations for the Connecticut PTA
  • Susan Halpin, Connecticut Association of Health Plans
  • Angela Harris, Phillips Health Ministry and Phillips CME Church
  • Eileen Healy, Executive Director of Independence Northwest for the Connecticut Cross-Disability Lifespan Alliance and Chair of the Connecticut Association of Centers for Independent Living
  • Derrick Holloway, Pastor of First Calvary Baptist Church
  • Erin Jones, Counsel for the March of Dimes
  • Greg Jones, Legacy Foundation
  • Nihal Khan, Director of Religious Affairs for the Islamic Center of Connecticut
  • Sal Luciano, President of the Connecticut AFL-CIO
  • Mag Morelli, President of LeadingAge Connecticut
  • Diane Morgenthaler, Director of Health and Wellness for Southern Connecticut State University
  • Maurice Porter, Reverend of Impact Church
  • Joseph Quaranta, President of the Community Medical Group and Co-Chair of the Connecticut Health Information Technology Advisory Council
  • Jordan Scheff, Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Developmental Services
  • Milagrosa Seguinot, President of Connecticut Community Health Workers Association
  • Heather Somers, State Senator (R-Griswold, Groton, North Stonington, Plainfield, Preston, Sterling, Stonington, Voluntown)
  • Vicki Veltri, Executive Director of the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy
Scientific subgroup
  • Jessica Abrantes-Figueiredo, Chief of Infectious Diseases for Saint Francis Hospital
  • David Banach, Head of Infection Prevention and Hospital Epidemiologist at UConn Health
  • Keith Grant, Senior System Director for Infection Prevention for Hartford HealthCare
  • Jim Hadler, Clinical Professor of Epidemiology at the Yale School of Medicine
  • Danyal Ibrahim, Trinity Health of New England
  • Albert Ko, Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine and Department Chair at the Yale School of Public Health
  • Roxy Kozyckyj, Director of State Government Affairs for the Healthcare Distribution Alliance
  • Richard Martinello, Medical Director of Infection Prevention for Yale New Haven Hospital and Yale New Haven Health
  • William Petit, State Representative (R-New Britain, Plainville)
  • Jack Ross, President of the Connecticut Infectious Diseases Society
  • Jason Schwartz, Assistant Professor at the Yale School of Public Health
  • Jody Terranova, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics for the American Academy of Pediatrics

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ana Radelat Ana has written about politics and policy in Washington, D.C.. for Gannett, Thompson Reuters and UPI. She was a special correspondent for the Miami Herald, and a regular contributor to The New York TImes, Advertising Age and several other publications. She has also worked in broadcast journalism, for CNN and several local NPR stations. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Journalism.

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
CT teachers are expected to get vaccinated for COVID at local clinics, but other options could cause problems
by Dave Altimari

School employees could end up on two lists, which means some vaccine might go to waste, officials said.

Black and Hispanic residents continue to be vaccinated against COVID at lower rates than white residents
by Kasturi Pananjady and Jenna Carlesso

Among those 65 and older, the rate of vaccination for white residents was 39%, compared to 21% for Black residents.

As mass vaccination centers take the lead in the COVID race, the push is on to reach the most vulnerable
by Dave Altimari

While mass vaccination sites have helped overall vaccination rates, they have not reached the state's most vulnerable populations.

Governor says frustrations with vaccine rollout should be with CDC guidelines
by Adria Watson

Lamont also said 30,000 doses of new J&J vaccine could arrive next week

Disability Rights CT files federal complaint over age-based vaccine rollout
by Kelan Lyons

The complaint alleges the state's age-based vaccine distribution plan discriminates against people with disabilities.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion Gas pipeline will threaten water quality, wildlife and wetlands
by Susan Eastwood

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has granted tentative approval of the 401 water quality certification for the Pomfret to Killingly natural gas pipeline. I urge DEEP to deny the 401 certification, as the proposed pipeline would violate the Connecticut’s water quality standards, and the conditions in the draft certification fail to protect our streams, wetlands, and wildlife.

Opinion Connecticut and the other Connecticut. Which will endure?
by Ezra Kaprov

What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘Connecticut’? Possibly, you think of a 43-year-old Puerto Rican man who arrived here with his family following Hurricane Maria. He works full-time as a machinist at the Sikorsky plant, and he coaches a prizefighter on the side.

Opinion COVID-19 increases urgency for legislature to pass medical aid-in-dying law
by Dr. Gary Blick

The COVID-19 crisis has exposed the profound tragedy of loved ones dying alone, in a hospital or nursing home, without the care and comfort of loved ones surrounding them. This pandemic also demonstrates the fragility of life, the limits of modern medicine to relieve suffering, and has magnified the systemic racial disparities in our healthcare system, resulting in higher hospitalization and death rates for people in communities of color. We must eradicate these disparities, so everyone has equal access to the full range of end-of-life care options.

Opinion Three fallacies and the truth about vaccines
by Kerri M. Raissian, Ph.D. and Dr. Jody Terranova

Connecticut’s Public Health Committee recently heard public testimony regarding HB6423 and SB568 --  bills that would remove the religious exemption (the medical exemption would rightfully remain in place) from vaccination in order to attend school.  The religious exemption allows parents to effectively opt their children out of vaccines. In doing so, these families can still send their children to Connecticut’s schools, daycares, colleges, and camps.  This places other children at risk of contracting vaccine-preventable illnesses, and it is imperative the Connecticut legislature remove this exception.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO