The Daily Gamecock

SC to move into phase 1b of vaccine rollout next Monday

<p>&nbsp;Seats are set up for COVID-19 testing on Davis Field.&nbsp;</p>
 Seats are set up for COVID-19 testing on Davis Field. 

South Carolina will transition into phase 1b of vaccine rollout starting March 8, Gov. Henry McMaster announced on Tuesday. 

Under phase 1b, teachers, essential workers and everyone 55 and older are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. People 16 or older with preexisting conditions are also eligible to receive the vaccine. 

This means some USC students may be eligible for the vaccine starting March 8. 

"Frontline occupational workers," such as teachers, can only get the vaccine if they are working in-person. 

This phase will include "more than half of everyone in South Carolina,” according to the Department of Health and Environmental Control Director Dr. Edward Simmer.

The announcement comes after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine gained FDA approval on Feb. 27. Unlike the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires one shot — not two.  

South Carolina will receive 41,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week, according to state health officials. 

The Daily Gamecock reached out to USC's Director of Strategic Health Initiatives and USC's Chief Health Officer of Student Health Services and is awaiting a response.


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