Wayne County Executive, Warren Evans, spells out COVID-19 plans

1. It seems that the number of vaccines that Wayne County will receive is determined by the Governor's office. What is the plan to get people in Wayne County vaccinated?

Wayne County is following the vaccine guidelines established by the State of Michigan as set by the Department of Health and Human Services. Right now, we are vaccinating seniors aged 65 years and older and people over the age of 50 with pre-existing conditions that make COVID-19 worse. As vaccine supply becomes more readily available we will be able to speed up this process. As of today, at least 65 percent of Wayne County seniors have received their first scheduled vaccine. In addition, the county was able to vaccinate more than 20,000 teachers and education workers in less than two weeks. This allowed all districts to be ready to open in-class instruction by March 1, as set forth by the State of Michigan.

2. We found out that Wayne County was divided into Phases. Can you tell us why that was done and how the County is divided?

Wayne County Public Health divided the county into four geographic regions based on population. It then prioritized communities in those regions based on the federal Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). This was done to ensure that the most vulnerable communities had access to our limited supply of vaccine. Putting the county into four regions allows us to provide vaccine to communities in each region simultaneously.

3. How long will it take to get the entire county vaccinated?

Everything depends on how much vaccine the county receives each week. The county health department is vaccinating about 10,000 people a week. This is in addition to vaccines administered by local hospitals and health systems. It will be mid-summer before there is enough vaccine to make it available to all people who want it. It is not a question of when the entire county will be vaccinated. We will keep at it so long as people want to take the vaccine. The real issue we are focusing on is vaccinating enough residents to create herd immunity to the virus. Herd immunity means enough people are no longer susceptible to getting COVID-19 and community spread of the disease stops. We think we need to get to 70% of the population who are vaccinated before we reach herd immunity. That is why it is very important for people to get the vaccine when it is their turn to do so. Stopping the spread of COVID-19 is the only way we can return to normal business and activities. Getting the vaccine is the best way to stop the spread.

4. The demographic breakdown of the approximately 1.8 million residents of Wayne County is 55% White, 39% Black, 6% Hispanic and 5% other people of color. Since it has been proven that COVID-19 is known to affect people of color, is there a plan to get these people vaccinated at a faster rate to reduce the number of people contracting COVID-19?

Yes. We are using the SVI to address communities in the county that are more vulnerable than others. These communities are targeted first as soon as vaccine supplies become available.

5. We realize that there is a Digital Divide in the county, where many homes don't have internet and many of the steps to get an appointment require registering on the internet. What is in place to address this problem?

We are working directly with each local community to assist with scheduling for those who are facing challenges. We expect to have a countywide call center up and running in the coming few weeks that will provide a one-stop location where people can call and schedule a vaccine appointment.

6. Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Joneigh S. Khaldun, Michigan's Chief Deputy Director for Health, has moved to include vaccines for people 50 and up, since we know many seniors over 65 years of age haven't been vaccinated, what is the plan to get those remaining seniors vaccinated.

As of today approximately 120,000 seniors over the age of 65 in Wayne County have been vaccinated. That is more than 65% of the estimated population. We continue to vaccinate our seniors along with our partners in the health systems. In addition, we will add the 50 and older population to our vaccine efforts so long as we have adequate supplies.

7. Lastly, we know that you have been distributing masks throughout the County and offering COVID-19 Testing, are these efforts still going on?

Wayne County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness has distributed more than 3 million masks and other personal protection equipment items since the pandemic started. This will continue until the pandemic is over. Even though more people are getting vaccinated, it remains critical for people to continue to wear a face mask outside the home, practice social distancing, and avoid large gatherings.

For more information visit http://www.waynecounty.com.