Evers: Vaccine Open To General Public May 1

MADISON, WI —Gov. Tony Evers announced Friday that the state's general public will become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine on May 1.

"I’m proud Wisconsin continues to be a regional and national leader in our vaccine distribution efforts, and having increased supply available means we’ll be able to open up to the general public on May 1st," Evers said in a statement. "Getting vaccinated will be key to putting this pandemic behind us, so I encourage every Wisconsinite who is currently eligible to get signed up."

Evers didn't specify if "general public" meant everyone 16 years old and older, which has been the age requirement for the state's previous vaccine eligibility groups.

The governor's comments came a day after the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) said it anticipated the general public becoming eligible sometime in May.

Then, Thursday night, President Joe Biden said during his first prime-time address that as vaccine supplies continue to increase, he would direct states to make all adults eligible for the vaccine by May 1.

"Let me be clear, that doesn't mean everyone's going to have the shot immediately, but it means you'll be able to get in line beginning May 1," Biden said, according to the Associated Press.

Also on Thursday, the DHS announced that people 16 years old and older with certain medical conditions will become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine on March 29.

In a release, the DHS said the decision to expand vaccine eligibility to include people with these conditions aligned with recommendations provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and input from its own medical experts and the State Disaster Medical Advisory Committee.

The medical conditions on the list are considered those known to make individuals more vulnerable to severe complications due to COVID-19. The addition of this group is expected to add more than 2 million names to the eligibility list, and DHS said providers may need to prioritize people within the group who are at a higher risk.

The list of medical conditions that will make individuals eligible for the vaccine on March 29, includes:

• Asthma (moderate-to-severe)
• Cancer
• Cerebrovascular disease (affects blood vessels and blood supply to the brain)
• Chronic kidney disease
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
• Cystic fibrosis
• Down syndrome
• Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
• Hypertension or high blood pressure
• Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant, blood or bone marrow transplant, immune deficiencies, HIV, use of corticosteroids, or use of other immune weakening medicines
• Liver disease
• Neurologic conditions, such as dementia
• Obesity (body mass index [BMI] of 30-39 kg/m2)
• Overweight (BMI of 25-29 kg/m2)
• Pregnancy
• Pulmonary fibrosis (having damaged or scarred lung tissues)
• Severe Obesity (BMI 40 kg/m2 or more)

According to the DHS, 1,895,402 vaccines had been administered in Wisconsin through Thursday, a total that reflected residents and non-residents who have received the vaccine in the state. Meanwhile, 1,185,602 residents of the state, or 20.4 percent of the population, had received at least one dose of the vaccine. A total of 667,193 residents, or 11.5 percent of the population, had completed the vaccine series, according to the DHS website on Friday.