MARQUETTE — The state of Michigan is hosting the next in a series of community town halls from 4 to 5 p.m. Thursday, with the event focusing on older adults currently eligible to receive the vaccine.

The virtual discussion will build upon the previous town halls with faith-based leaders and communities of color about the safety, efficacy and importance of the COVID-19 vaccines for safely reopening Michigan.

In the coming months, Michigan will host additional town halls in partnership with public health and community leaders.

Events are live-streamed at Facebook.com/MichiganHHS.

The goal of the town hall series is to address the safety and efficacy of the vaccine by answering questions within vulnerable communities. The vaccine distribution plan has prioritized older adults as the risk of severe illness from COVID-19 increases with age.

Vaccine distribution guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that adults age 65 or older be one of the first groups to receive COVID-19 vaccines.

Even as the COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expands, it’s important that older adults understand the safety and efficacy of the authorized vaccines so that they can get scheduled as soon as possible if they haven’t already received the vaccine, said Alexis Travis, Ph.D., senior deputy director of the Aging and Adult Services Agency within the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, in a news release.

Moderated by Travis, the panel also will feature: Zaneta Adams, director of the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency; Maureen Taylor, chair of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization; Rev. Horace Sheffield, pastor of Detroit’s New Destiny Christian Fellowship; Dr. Brenda Surae Eaton; Mark Hornbeck of AARP Michigan; and Dr. Herbert Smitherman of Detroit Receiving Hospital.

“As a veteran who knows firsthand what protecting others looks like, I truly believe that wearing a mask and getting the COVID-19 vaccines are some of the simplest things we can do to protect our veterans from COVID-19,” Adams said in a news release. “There are more than 550,000 veterans in Michigan, many over the age of 50 with pre-existing conditions, ages and experiences (that) can make them more at risk for potentially deadly illnesses like COVID-19.”

Ahead of the discussion, attendees are encouraged to submit their questions for the town hall about the COVID-19 vaccine at https://bit.ly/3r9ZG2f. Any questions that cannot be answered during the town halls due to time constraints will be reviewed and added to the Michigan COVID-19 vaccine frequently asked questions section on its website. Visit Michigan.gov/Coronavirus.

Lieutenant governor visits Ford Field

Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist on Monday visited Ford Field alongside members of Congress to observe the partnerships and logistics supporting Michigan’s first federal community vaccination site, which is expected to administer an additional 6,000 vaccines per day for eight weeks beginning on Wednesday.

“We continue to keep our foot on the gas to ensure that every Michigander who wants a vaccine can get one as quickly as possible,” Gilchrist said in a statement. “The Ford Field community vaccine site is an opportunity to be a national leader in vaccine distribution by building upon the work that we’ve done to ensure equitable access to this safe and effective vaccine — and we thank our local, federal, hospital and private sector partners for making it happen.

“We know the vaccine is the most effective way to get back to normal, so that we can all hug our families, get together again and create economic opportunity going forward. It’s on all of us to stand tall by getting the vaccine when it is our turn.”

To date, Michigan has administered about 3.4 million vaccines, moving the state closer to its goal of equitably vaccinating at least 70% of state residents ages 16 and older as soon as possible. The state is working to administer 50,000 shots per day, partnering with organizations like Ford Field to create more opportunities for residents to receive a vaccine.

Ford Field will operate from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. seven days a week for eight weeks, starting Wednesday, under the federal government’s vaccination pilot program. The site was selected according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention priority tool to help those hardest hit and most vulnerable.

The Ford Field clinic has the capacity to administer 6,000 doses daily.

Physicians promoting vaccine access

Michigan’s family physicians on Monday urged the state to include primary care physicians in the vaccination administration process before public vaccine eligibility begins on April 5.

The Michigan Academy of Family Physicians said that as vaccine supply increases, including primary care physicians more directly in vaccination efforts will help alleviate the burden now being placed on local public health departments and health care systems.

“It’s been a long year for everyone as we have navigated this public health crisis,” said Dr. Mark Hamed, president of the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians, in a statement. “We have made great progress but have a long way to go, and that is why we believe it is time to bring Michigan’s primary care physicians into vaccination administration efforts. As we near time for the general public to be eligible for vaccines, demand will be high, and we are ready to step up and help.”

Primary care doctors traditionally administer around half of all non-COVID adult vaccinations, protecting patients against pneumonia, measles, polio, influenza and other vaccine-preventable diseases. Boosting capacity by including family physicians in COVID-19 vaccine allocation, when supply is available, will help the state reach its goal of vaccinating 70% of the population sooner, the academy said.

It also indicated that including primary care physicians in vaccine efforts also will help the state move toward achieving herd immunity — when enough are immune to the disease to make its spread unlikely — more quickly.

A recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that eight out of 10 people are likely to rely on the advice of their primary care physician before deciding whether to get immunized, according to the academy.

This week, during Family Medicine Week, as proclaimed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, MAFP also reminds Michiganders to make sure they are staying up to date on other vaccines that are essential to keeping adults and children healthy. In Michigan, more than 200,000 fewer doses of non-influenza vaccines administered in 2020 and less than 50% of children under age 2 are up to date on their vaccinations, it said.

Christie Mastric can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250. Her email address is cbleck@miningjournal.net