PUEBLO — Senior citizens in southern Colorado have heard they are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, but what many have overlooked is they can get it only when enough doses are available.
Gov. Jared Polis announced last week that Colorado citizens over the age of 70 are now eligible for the vaccine. He prefaced the remark by saying it depended on when frontline healthcare workers had all received their vaccines and when supplies were available.
Some senior citizens in Pueblo got in line at a drive-through vaccination clinic for healthcare workers and first responders Monday. It was at a local fire station and organizers had to turn them away.
Randy Evetts, Pueblo Public Health Director, wants to clarify any misunderstanding. He says Pueblo County is still working to vaccinate first-priority frontline medical workers. There are not enough doses yet available to start vaccinations for senior citizens.
“The vaccine manufactures are making it as fast they can, but there's a limit to that supply chain so we respond based on the vaccine we receive that week,” said Evetts.
He cannot give an exact timeline for when senior vaccinations will start. It is because the size of vaccine shipments are typically not the same. He estimates a week or two.
Shipments are typically a couple hundred up to 1,000 doses. The number of eligible seniors in Pueblo County is close to 18,000. It means many will still have to wait for weeks after vaccinations for seniors start.
