Progressing to Phase 1-B and how soon you will be able to get your vaccine

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — North Carolina revamped their vaccine distribution guidelines to fall in line with new direction from the CDC last week and some people are questioning when they will be eligible to receive the vaccine.

Currently, North Carolina is in Phase 1-A, meaning the healthcare workers who are working on the frontlines of the virus and those living or working in long-term care facilities can get the shot.

New Hanover County Assistant Health Director Carla Turner says they are actively planning to move into Phase 1-B Group One, which is anyone 75 years and older no matter your health conditions. The state has advised that several counties will be able to move into the phase on January 11, but Turner says they are not sure if they will move forward on, before, or shortly after that date.

There is no definite timeline when we will progress into each phase.

“I don’t know when we’ll move from one phase to the next. Like I said, we’re actively planning as to when we can move into group one of 1-b, which is the 75 and older population, but any subsequent phases after that it’s just a matter of how long it takes us to get through that current phase that we’re in,” Turner said.

Not only time but supply.

“Which is another reason we can’t vaccinate everybody at one time, because we wouldn’t have enough vaccine to cover everybody at one time,” Turner said. “So they prioritize people who are at the highest risk of getting covid and then the highest risk of having really bad outcomes if they do get covid.”

Some people were wondering why seniors were in the first group to receive the vaccinations in other states and not North Carolina, Turner explains if seniors get sick they will need someone to take care of them.

“If I don’t have the healthcare workers to be at work then I can’t take care of the people when they get sick,” Turner said. “So I’m reserving the capacity to continue to provide healthcare, so if we do have these folks who do have severe illness then we have the staff to be able to adequately take care of them.”

You can find a full breakdown of the phases here.

If you are not sure which group you fall under, contact the New Hanover County Health Department Coronavirus Call Center at 910-798-6800. The call center is open Monday through Friday 8am-5pm.