Medical tourism: US Covid vaccination?
 

We would be interested in traveling to the US - we usually winter in GA - to get vaccinated, once a vaccine is available. We cannot drive to the US from Canada but we can fly in.
The national government or a state government could declare us ineligible to receive the vaccine, of course -- I have no quarrel with that.
But here is my Q to US residents:
How would you expect to get your Covid vaccination, once it's available?
NYT says dissemination of the doses will be swift and may employ the military. But will they go to pharmacies (as NYT suggested), hospitals or doctor's offices?
Any insights on how your government(s) will ration access to the vaccine?
Or is it all too early to know how this will roll out?
Thanks for any insight you can provide at this early date. My spouse is in a high-risk group and we would rather not wait until later in 2021 to get vaccinated in Canada.

Most people in the US will be waiting until mid-to-late 2021 to be vaccinated. Initially, the doses will go to front-line medics treating Covid patients. It is too early to know details.

Well, this is a bizarre twist on the ever-popular subject of the tragedy of the American healthcare system. If the US actually manages to get its vaccination act together I suspect Canada will have done also.

Here is the CDC suggested priority list for getting
the vaccine:

First responders
People in essential jobs
People with underlying medical conditions or at risk
People over 65

The vaccine is not yet approved, and there will not be enough for all adults when it is.

One would think, among other issues, the OP & spouse would think staying at home & waiting for a supply on their doorstep would be the priority rather than the prolonged exposure of travel..

I would expect to get it the same way I get any vaccine -- at a pharmacy that is covered by my insurance. I would expect they may be under orders to to give it only to certain groups based on dates. For example, first health care workers will get it and that is probably at work. Then maybe first responders, etc., and they also might get it at work. I fall into the older age group (and I have some mitigating factors, but nothing too unusual for my age), so I would expect there might be some priority that seniors are next, so whenever that happens, I would expect there might be orders from either the Feds and/or state for pharmacies and doctors offices to only give it to that category when that groups' "turn" comes along.

Now my state of resiidence (Maryland) claims that you get "preregister" to get it on their state website, but I checked and you can'ty right now. Maybe you will be able to in the future, and then I would guess it would be done the same as the current COVID tests that are given by the govt, iot's in community health centers. That could be the way they will do the COVID vaccine, also.

Whatever the method is, I do NOT think some foreigners will be able to walk in and get it even if they fall into the group at that time (say, seniors). Of course they'd have to self-pay, but I don't think that is the issue here. I could be wrong, iot could be that when they say this period seniors can get it, anyone in the world can walk in and if in the right age group get it, jas long as thye pay for it. But I really don't know, to be honest.

Frankly, I rather doubt given pattern so far that the vaccine will be made available more easily and earlier in the US than in Canada, not sure why one would think that will happen. For people with special disease of immune compromise (I know someone like that), I suspect they will get a special allocation through their doctors who can verify their history. Once it gets to just people over the age of 64, for eample, that is easy to check by ID. They have to check your ID when giving you any vaccination anyway.

I work in healthcare and with high risk clients. I had a client tell me if I get vaccinated his mom will be ok not to be. Trust me, the people will screw this up so bad. My husband was vaccinated a lot in the Navy and one night I had ten blankets on him and he still was shaking the bed. They hit him with several vaccinations that day. I just can't imagine lining hospital doctors and nurses up and giving them all shots. It will have to be spaced out for they have flu like symptoms for around 24 hours. The second dose also. I am hoping to get mine on a day where I have the next day off. I don't know if we will have that choice. Advent health is supposed to do it here in central Fl.
I be tCanada gets it out quicker than us to the people. My concern is all the old people in nursing homes dealing with side effects. Not going to be fun.

For the OP news about Canada https://globalnews.ca/news/7488324/v...u-nato-fortin/

The communication about the vaccine has been so screwed up by government here so there is so much mistrust about the speed that has produced thie vaccine. Actually the method of the vaccine has been in the works for MANY MANY years and was last iterated in the Ebola pandemic. SO it isn't new and it should be trusted--but 50% of the country doesn't trust it. This isn't enough immunization to get to the needed community immunity that is needed to wipe out the virus. SO everyone get on board.
CVS has been infolled as a distribution point I think.
Much is still to be learned.

Macross has a good point, the one time I got a flu shot, I got sick with the flu, and my sister (works for our family doctor) said that was a common complaint from patients. So good to pan ahead to get the shot. Also I think with the corona vaccine you have to get two shots?

I know for my shingles shot (which I have been putting off) I have to get it at a local pharmacy, have to get two shots a few months apart, and even with my Medicare advantage plan I have a copay of $35. I also have to let them know in advance so they will have the vaccine ready.

AFAIK, all the major (i.e. rich) countries have already secured their shares of the vaccines.
The EU has confirmed orders for 760 million doses (for appr. 450 million people) of the three vaccines that are closest to get a permission from the respective health authorities. And already has contracted 900 million doses more from the other companies that are not that far yet.
I assume that the US, Canada, Japan and Australia have done exactly the same during the last weeks.

The first shingles shot knocked me out for two days. The second was fine. It did the same to my doctor. He told me he got it on a Thursday, shots never bother him. For the first time ever, he wasn't at work on Friday.

Believe me that is a small price to pay for shingles protection. I cannot take the shot so just hope, but watched my husband go through it--and he had had the vaccine but I think the current vaccine is a newer one.

And yess the US has signed up for entough vaccine for triple our population

Our local CVS says it will be obtaining the vaccines to administer there. Perhaps by age as to who is eligible first?
I would not leave Canada for the USA at this time if I were you. Stay home and safe.