Officials in North Carolina have announced that the state will begin vaccinating school personnel, including nutrition professionals, later this month as it moves into the next phase of its vaccine rollout.
The state will join 28 others, along with Washington, D.C., that have expanded COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to include some or all school nutrition workers in their respective states.
Just because school nutrition professionals are now eligible for the vaccine; however, doesn’t mean they’ve been able to actually receive it. As vaccine supply still remains limited, many are struggling to find appointments.
A slow rollout in California, for example, has driven almost 60 community organizations, cities and churches in Los Angeles County to write a letter to Gov. Gavin Newson asking him to immediately vaccinate teachers and other staff at Los Angeles Unified School District so it could open safely as soon as possible, CBS Los Angeles reports.
The CDC released guidelines late last week stating that while teachers and other school staff should be prioritized for the vaccine as supply is made available, vaccines are not needed to safely open schools for in-person learning.