Vaccines available for teachers is the goal of the ‘Get Ready” plan announced by State Schools Superintendent Chris Reykdal and Kaiser Permanente Washington president Susan Mullaney.
“Keeping our educators and school staff safe is very important to me,” said Governor Jay Inslee. “This announcement does not allow educators to move ahead in the current prioritization, it means when it is their turn, we are ready to move ahead. I’m excited about today’s announcement and look forward to working with Superintendent Reykdal, Kaiser Permanente, and our labor partners as we continue our efforts to make sure our educators and school staff have rapid and equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as they are eligible.”
The plan calls for 14 to 20 vaccination locations along the I-5 corridor and in Spokane which will be capable of offering vaccination to upwards of 80% of school employees. OSPI and DOH are additionally planning further efforts to define potential sites more proximate to Central Washington school employees.
“Knowing we needed a plan for vaccinating our 143,000 school employees, my first call was to Susan Mullaney and the Kaiser Permanente team,” said State Superintendent Chris Reykdal. “Although our schools are already reopening safely without widespread vaccinations, we know this will expedite that process and ultimately benefit our students, their families, our educators and staff, and our communities as a whole.”
School districts are encouraged to maintain existing vaccination plans already in development; however, this integrated approach will offer an equitable approach to vaccinating school employees in Washington. All vaccination efforts will be in coordination with the newly formed Washington State Vaccine Command and Coordination Center, and vaccine availability will continue to be dependent upon the number of vaccines the state receives.
The plan will include dedicated vaccine resources and space provided by Kaiser Permanente at its owned and operated clinics as well as K-12 school locations for both member and nonmember school employees. School districts are encouraged to maintain existing vaccination plans already in development, but a website and updated information on this integrated approach will offer centrally accessible information about timing, scheduling, and links to state resources such as Phase Finder and more.
Those eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine currently include groups in Phase 1 Tier 1A, 2A, and 1B. Educators and staff in K-12 facilities are expected to be eligible to receive the vaccine after 50 percent of the currently eligible population are vaccinated, in accordance with DOH plans. You can find if you are eligible for the vaccine here.
