Maine expands access to COVID vaccines as feds put up barriers
By Christopher Burns, Bangor Daily News Staff
Maine is expanding access to COVID-19 vaccines.
That comes as the Trump administration moves to put up barriers to widespread use of COVID vaccines.
On Sept. 12 Gov. Janet Mills issued a standing order to health professionals in the state that Mainers do not need a prescription for COVID vaccines, meaning they can get a jab at a pharmacy or doctor’s office, for example, on request.
“I will not stand idly by while the Trump Administration makes it harder for Maine people to get a vaccine that protects their health and could very well save their life,” Mills said in a statement. “Through this standing order, we are stepping up to knock down the barriers the Trump Administration is putting in the way of the health and welfare of Maine people.”
Additionally, Robert Carey, the state’s insurance superintendent, informed insurers operating in Maine that they must cover COVID vaccines.
The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends all children between 6 months and 23 months get vaccinated against COVID, at-risk children between the ages 2 and 18 be vaccinated and that all adults 18 years and older should receive a shot. The Maine CDC maintains that a COVID vaccine remains the best defense against a severe infection.
The Mills administration said that its moves are in line with the recommendations of health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Family Physicians.
“COVID-19 vaccination remains the best defense against severe illness, hospitalization, and death,” Maine CDC Director Puthiery Va said in a statement. “This standing order helps reduce barriers for Maine people by allowing qualified providers to vaccinate without requiring individual prescriptions, expanding access.”
In May, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services removed COVID-19 vaccines from the list of immunizations recommended for healthy children and pregnant women.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced in August that his department was revoking emergency-use authorizations that make COVID vaccines widely available at the height of the pandemic..
The Food and Drug Administration has approved vaccines for people 65 and older and those who are at higher risk, particularly if they have cancer, diabetes, heart conditions, HIV, blood disorders, immune system ailments, chronic diseases, pregnancy and tuberculosis.
Health professionals have worried that these moves will make it harder for many people to get vaccinated against COVID. Without insurance, a COVID vaccine can cost as much as $142 for an adult, according to the CDC.