Elevated COVID-19 Mortality Risk Among Recipients of Home and Community-Based Services: A case for Prioritizing Vaccination for This Population
- Document
- Posted on: 03.02.2021
- Author(s):
- H. Stephen Kaye, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus, Institute for Health & Aging, University of California San Francisco President, Board of Directors, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund
- Abstract
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Under Federal guidance, states have developed plans to vaccinate residents for COVID-19 in tiers. Nursing home residents and older adults have been prioritized across the board, but as state plans evolve over time, it has become clear that nonelderly community residents with disabilities, as a group, are not being afforded high priority for vaccination. Several states target segments of the disability population, such as those with specified chronic health conditions confirmed to increase the risk of COVID-related mortality, leaving many others at high risk for COVID exposure, severe disease, and mortality to wait for a later phase.
This analysis focuses on people with disabilities who need and receive long -term services and supports (LTSS) in their homes and other community settings, a largely overlooked population at high risk for both exposure to the virus, because they typically get daily help and other services from people entering their living quarters, and for mortality, because of health conditions and impairments that increase their likelihood of severe disease.
