Pa. National Guard to assist in vaccinating educators
Katherine Mansfield/For the Observer-Reporter
Dave Narigon teaches a sixth-grade science class this week at Fort Cherry Elementary School. Educators as well as support staffs will begin receiving the new Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.
State Rep. Tim O’Neal, R-South Strabane Township, joined Gov. Tom Wolf for a news conference Wednesday, announcing the next phase of vaccination distribution to the state’s educators.
The entire new supply of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 single-dose vaccine in Pennsylvania will be dedicated to schoolteachers and education support staffs, including bus drivers.
Gov. Tom Wolf said Wednesday that the Pennsylvania National Guard will assist Intermediate Units in administering the first wave of 94,600 Johnson & Johnson doses set to arrive soon in the state.
“Our Guard is the perfect group to run this,” said state Rep. Tim O’Neal, R-South Strabane Township, who joined Wolf Wednesday in making the announcement.
Wolf said there are about 200,000 public- and private-school teachers and education support staff members who are eligible to receive the vaccine, that the entire community should be offered doses by the end of the month.
Dr. Michael Lucas, superintendent of Trinity Area School District, said Wednesday that the vaccinations will help the district safely sustain the face-to-face, in-person instructional model.
“The vaccinations can limit the need to quarantine staff and students, temporarily close schools, or provide unplanned remote instruction for an extended period of time,” said Lucas. “Most importantly, the vaccines will help us keep our students and staff safe. We need our schools to stay open.”
Lucas said Trinity staff members will be able to get vaccinations as early as next week. About 200 employees have been vaccinated so far, and Lucas expects another 200 to be vaccinated in the next two weeks.
Wolf said the J&J vaccine has a lower efficacy than the Moderna and Pfizer drugs, but it prevents hospitalizations and deaths from the virus. The Moderna and Pfizer doses will continue to be reserved for those 65 and older and others with serious health issues, he said.
The goal is to “get our kids back in the classroom safely,” Wolf said.
He said the virus is still a concern, that people in schools need to wear masks and practice social distancing when possible.
There were 1,670 people hospitalized with the virus Wednesday in Pennsylvania, with 354 of them in intensive-care units. There were about 1,400 fewer hospitalizations than there were during the peak in December, the state Health Department reported.
The state reported 69 new COVID-19 deaths, two of which were in Washington County.
There were 2,577 new virus cases statewide, taking the cumulative total since March to 938,411.
Washington County reported 29 new virus cases, bringing its total to 13,795. Greene County’s case-count grew by four to 2,684. Fayette County added 20 new cases to its total of 10,528.
State Sen. Pat Stefano, R-Connellsville, said it was critical to get children back into schools.
“The constant disruptions children face every time there is an exposure in school creates a growing education deficit,” Stefano said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Debra Bogen, director of the Allegheny County Health Department, warned the public to continue to take the virus seriously to avoid a third surge in cases and deaths.
Bogen said the number of new cases has been creeping up in Allegheny to about 170 a day this week as compared to 155 a day last week.
“March seems to be moving in the right direction,” said Rich Fitzgerald, the Allegheny executive. “We’re not there yet.”
Staff writer Karen Mansfield contributed to this story.