AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced Thursday some independent health care workers that are not part of the state's larger health systems could start to get vaccinated for COVID-19 as early as next week.
This comes after the Maine Medical Association and independent providers across the state voiced concerns they were "forgotten" in the state's vaccination plan early this week.
Health officials made the announcement in a press release Thursday promising to extend its vaccination efforts to physicians, nurses, and other providers working outside of hospital settings.
The Maine Dept. of Health and Human Services and CDC said the state placed its fifth order for 17,075 more doses of the vaccine with the federal government.
Many first responders and EMTs started to receive the vaccine in departments statewide this week.
So far more than 27,000 health care workers and long-term care residents have been vaccinated, but officials say the state has received at least 5,000 fewer doses than it was promised.
"The changes in the number of doses and mix of vaccines we’re receiving has forced us to alter some parts of our vaccination plan," Maine CDC Director, Dr. Nirav D. Shah said in a statement. "Despite those changes, we remain focused on ensuring that all Maine health care providers get the vaccine as efficiently and equitably as possible."
Officials indicated that more than half of next week’s allocation will be for patient-facing staff in hospital-affiliated practices, dialysis centers, oncology practices and independent medical practices that provide urgent and acute care.
Larger health clinics are likely to receive vaccinations first, due to limited supply.
Shah told reporters in a press briefing Wednesday that independent providers were always part of the vaccination plan, after front line workers in hospital and long-term care settings.
Providers who spoke to NEWS CENTER Maine said that was not the case.
We've been completely forgotten about," Dr. Cortney Linville from Wiscasset said Wednesday. "This isn't taking vaccine from someone else and giving it to us, we just want to be counted."
According to the Maine Medical Association, more than 1,000 independent doctors, nurses and health care staff statewide have yet to receive the vaccine.
The organization is working alongside the CDC to coordinate vaccination efforts in the next few weeks.