Mary Parr-Sanchez called President Joe Biden’s plan to help get the coronavirus vaccine to teachers and school support staff a “game changer” that could accelerate campus openings across the state.
The Biden administration announced Tuesday it will use the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program to provide enough doses to ensure all educators are inoculated by the end of the month.
“I think President Biden’s announcement is what educators have been wanting to hear,” Parr-Sanchez, president of the National Education Association of New Mexico, said in an interview Wednesday.
News of the teacher vaccination effort came as state health officials expressed optimism about the effect of vaccinations in bringing down daily caseloads statewide, but also concerns about a recent decision by the governor of Texas to lift business restrictions and a mask mandate. The action could cause another spike in that state, potentially leading to greater spread in New Mexico.
The timeline for launching the federally aided vaccinations for teachers in New Mexico was still unclear.
State Health Secretary Dr. Tracie Collins said in a virtual news conference Wednesday the state has been talking with the White House about the initiative.
“[We’re] working with them this week, them being the president and the office, to figure out about doses and how we roll this out,” Collins said.
As of Monday, 71 of the state’s 89 school districts had reopened using a hybrid-learning model, in which students are in the classroom at least two days a week and otherwise learning remotely.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a news release Wednesday providers have vaccinated about 14,000 people who have identified themselves as teachers through the state’s vaccine registration website.
That’s less than a third of the 45,000 educators who have registered to receive the vaccine, said Matt Bieber, a spokesman for the state Department of Health. Thousands of other people work as support staff in schools.
State and local education leaders have lobbied for school employees to be moved to a higher priority in the vaccine distribution process since shots became available in December. Many New Mexico teachers were able to get vaccinated earlier this year, before the Department of Health acknowledged there had been a miscommunication about who was eligible for shots as the state moved into a new phase of distribution.
Currently, the department is prioritizing for vaccination critical health care workers, nursing home residents and staff, New Mexicans 75 and older, and those 16 and older at risk of a severe illness.
