She encouraged caretakers of newly-eligible children ages 6 months to 5 years to act swiftly, too.
“We hope that you make the decision to vaccinate and boost all of your family members who are eligible,” she said, adding that anyone with questions should consult their doctors. Maryland also has created a website that includes links to data and clinical trials. The state’s vaccine order is comprised of half Moderna and half Pfizer shots. Additional doses will arrive later, Chan said.
While the state will distribute the vaccines in time for doses to be given out on June 20, not every provider will necessarily have them immediately available, state officials said.
Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said Maryland’s health department has transitioned from an emergency response to one that anticipates living with the virus indefinitely.
He touted plans preparing for a fall surge, including up to 50 one-stop-shop “covid service centers” throughout the state that could quickly mobilize if caseloads spike.
The centers, for which the state is soliciting bids, would be established at existing urgent care or other health facilities with dormant capabilities that ramp up during a surge. With extra tents and personnel, the centers would providing testing, booster shots, antivirals and other therapeutics in one place.
People who suspect they have the virus could get tested and either treated or boosted on-site, depending on the test results. Hogan said the coordinated pop-up centers would help relieve pressure on hospitals, which were inundated with people seeking tests during the omicron surge.
Maryland already has 88 “test to treat” centers throughout the state, where people can get a test and immediately receive antiviral treatments such as Paxlovid — if appropriate — without having to make a separate doctor’s appointment.
Howard Haft, executive director of the Maryland Primary Care Program, which coordinates physicians, said that use of oral antivirals that were once hard to find has been rapidly on the rise. Haft said their use increased more than fourfold since the beginning of the year.
Despite the transition from an emergency response, Maryland health officials will continue many of the programs launched during the pandemic, Hogan said.
The governor said the state will continue its surveillance effort to detect new variants and determine how much virus is in the community. Maryland also has stockpiled 2.3 million rapid at-home tests, along with extra personal protective gear.
“We continue to stand ready to adapt and respond just as we have over the past two-and-a-half years,” he said.
Some Maryland counties have medium or low transmission levels, according to the Centers for Disease Control’s latest guidelines, but several populous areas are experiencing high levels of transmission.
Anne Arundel, Howard and Baltimore counties, along with Baltimore City, have high transmission levels as of Thursday. Prince George’s, Montgomery and Charles counties have medium transmission levels. Frederick County is in low transmission.
