ARIZONA, USA — People with disabilities must be prioritized in future revisions of the Arizona COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Plan, according to a letter from the Arizona Center for Disability Law (ACDL) to the Arizona Department of Health Services Director Dr. Cara Christ.
The ACDL, in cooperation with several other advocacy organizations, sent a letter to Christ on Monday expressing their concerns to ensure Arizonans with disabilities are properly protected and supported in vaccine distribution in the state.
"Arizona currently has a high number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and the virus continues to spread at unprecedented rates in Arizona, putting enormous strain on our medical system and placing persons with disabilities at great risk for exposure, illness, and death,” J.J. Rico, CEO of the Arizona Center for Disability Law, said.
One of the recommendations the letter focused on was adding explicit protections in the vaccine distribution plan for people with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities (I/DD).
Individuals with I/DD who test positive for COVID-19 have fatality rates of 100% to 200% higher than the general population.
Right now, the state's distribution plan only has explicit consideration for those living in the Division of Developmental Disabilities group homes.
Other recommendations listed in the letter include:
- Explicit protections for people living in secure behavioral health facilities
- Ensuring equitable access to vaccines for people who are homebound
- Guidance for people living in non-institutional congregate settings
- Partnering with disability rights organizations
“We need clear and specific protections to be listed in Arizona’s vaccination distribution guidelines, especially since our community has been and will continue to be at grave risk during this pandemic," Rico said.
You can read the full letter here:
Stay up to date on all the news about the COVID-19 vaccine in Arizona in our YouTube playlist here.
