All Texas teachers, school employees and child care workers are now eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines thanks to a shift in federal pharmacy policy.
On Wednesday, Dr. John Hellerstedt, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, sent a letter to vaccine providers across the state, informing them that a federal directive immediately expands vaccine eligibility to include “those who work in pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools, as well as Head Start and Early Head Start programs (including teachers, staff, and bus drivers) and those who work as or for licensed child care providers, including center-based and family care providers.”
The policy change came a day after President Joe Biden urged states to prioritize teachers on vaccination lists, using federal pharmacy guidelines to do so.
“My challenge is this: We want every educator, school staff member, child care worker to receive at least one shot by the end of the month of March,” Biden said Tuesday at a White House news conference.
Teacher vaccinations are a key pillar in Biden’s push to reopen schools within his first 100 days in office.
Read the full story at Dallas Morning News.
