Oregon lacks targeted plan to ensure vulnerable seniors vaccinated amid expected ‘chaos,’ advocates say
Updated Feb 06, 2021;
Posted Feb 06, 2021
Sara Gardner, 82, pictured with her cat Kathy in her Sellwood condo. Gardner, who is a two time cancer survivor, doesn t expect to be able to receive a COVID-19 vaccine starting Feb. 8.
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Sara Gardner spends her COVID-19 days in her Sellwood condo living a lonely life on repeat.
The 82-year-old goes on walks, if it’s not too slick, and occasionally drives her 88-year-old neighbor to medical appointments. She moderates social media comments for a national cancer group of which she’s the vice president. But she mostly hangs out with her two cats and stares out the window at the Willamette River and tries not to think about the big trips she’s had to cancel, the friends she’s not seeing, the two new great-grandchildren born in other states she hasn’t met or held.
Advocates push for better communication from Oregon officials to help seniors get vaccines Genevieve Reaume, KATU Staff
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Frustration is mounting as loved ones work to get their elderly parents signed up for a COVID-19 vaccine.
Next week, those 80 years and older become eligible, but those trying to schedule the shots are being thrown in a circle, unable to find answers to basic questions including how, when and where they ll get vaccinated. I know over 50 people, most of them younger than 60s, certainly younger than 70, that all have gotten their shot, but not my 90-year-old mother, David Earl said.