The vaccine for COVID-19 has been out for almost two months in many parts of the country. Normally, vaccines take about 10-15 years to develop, but in this case we have received the vaccine much sooner than expected.
While many people are eagerly waiting for the world to go back to normal, some people are still skeptical about just how safe the vaccine is.
The Florida Department of Health in Leon County and its partners around the stature have been trying to distribute the COV ID vaccine throughout the city of Tallahassee. The vaccination was said to be administered only to long-term care facility residents and staff, people 65 years or older, and health-care personnel with direct patient contact.
But that has changed, as Florida will now begin to restrict the first dose of the COVID vaccinations to state residents only. Florida surgeon general Dr. Scott Rivkees issued a public health advisory that restricts the first dose to residents and to people providing health-care services that involve direct contact with covid patients. Rivkees said that “the vaccine is extremely limited for availability.”
Chicago native and current Tallahassee resident Jessica Thomas weans’t happy with Florida’s decision to restrict the first dose of the vaccine to state residents only. “I have mixed feelings about Florida’s decision. On one hand I think it’s unfair because the federal government pays for the vaccines so they shouldn’t be limited to one county or state. On the other hand Florida has been a leading state when it comes to the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths, and with vaccination supplies being limited that warrants certain restrictions to be put in place,” Thomas said.
Some out-of-state residents have a different opinion regarding the news. Mya Durr said she feels the vaccine should be available to everyone.
“If a COVID vaccine exists, I think we should all get it. I was skeptical at first since vaccines have a history of being ineffective or causing side effects. But as a person who had COVID, I am patiently waiting for the vaccine to be open to the public. I am excited to see people get the vaccine so we can end COVID for good,” Durr said.
There is no word when the vaccine will become available to out-of-state residents. For now all we can do is wait to see how effective the vaccine will be. There have been positive responses from those who have successfully taken the vaccine, and no new deaths have been reported for those who have received the vaccine.