The COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Nebraska on Monday.
LINCOLN — Vaccinations for COVID-19 soon will begin in Nebraska prisons, with health care workers expected to get the first shots later this week, officials say.
The first shipment of Moderna vaccine arrived this week, according to State Corrections Director Scott Frakes. Later this week, health care workers who work most directly with inmates will be offered the first 50 doses.
“As in the community, our health care workers are at the top of the priority list,” Frakes said.
After health care staff get their shots, he said, corrections will administer the vaccine as it arrives to staff members based on the jobs they hold and their level of contact with inmates.
According to the state’s vaccination plan, front-line corrections officers are included in Phase 1B of the state’s vaccination priorities, along with others who provide critical services, such as first responders. Prison inmates are listed among those in Phase 1C, which includes people ages 65-74 and people with high-risk medical conditions and vulnerable populations.
Dr. Harbans Deol, medical director for corrections, said that within those groups, shots will be prioritized based on who are at highest risk for becoming sick due to age, medical condition and other factors. As more vaccine becomes available, he said, more workers and inmates will get the shots.
Prisons have been identified as a high-risk location for the spread of COVID-19 because social distancing is so difficult. Nebraska’s prison workers have been hit hard by the virus, with 472 testing positive as of Saturday. Three hundred and eighty-six of those workers have recovered, according to the agency.
As of Dec. 18, 873 inmates had tested positive, according to the agency’s website. Six deaths of prisoners have been attributed to COVID-19.
Our best Omaha staff photos of 2020
Our best Omaha staff photos of 2020
A couple share a kiss as fireworks erupt over downtown on New Year's Eve in Omaha.
Z LONG THE WORLD-HERALD
Clouds roll in just before sunset as a pedestrian walks on Farnam Street near S. 17th Street in Omaha, Nebraska, Tuesday, January 7, 2020.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Two bald eagles share a perch under the moonlight at Chalco Hills Recreation Area in Omaha, Nebraska, on Thursday, January 9, 2020.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN THE WORLD-HERALD
A buffalo statue catches snowflakes on its tongue Friday, Jan. 10, 2020, in downtown Omaha.
KAYLA WOLF THE WORLD-HERALD
Trudy, a dachshund puppy, motivates gym goers during a lunch workout on Friday, Jan. 10, 2020, at The Bodysmith.
KAYLA WOLF THE WORLD-HERALD
Dense fog envelops the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge on Monday, January 13, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Preston Love Jr. organizes an annual trip of 40 high school students on a history Black Votes Matter Tour to Memphis, Birmingham, Montgomery, Selma, and Atlanta. Love, Jr., poses for a portrait in front of a LOVE mural near the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Cornerstone Memorial at the intersection of N. 24th Street and Lake Street in Omaha, Nebraska on Friday, January 10, 2020.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Irene Harris of Gretna sweeps underneath a flower and tree display prior to the 35th Annual Cathedral Flower Festival at the Saint Cecilia Cathedral in Omaha, Nebraska, on Friday, January 24, 2020. The show with a theme of "For Everything a Season" celebrates all occasions and honors florists.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Former Vice President Joe Biden one of the candidates for the next President of the United States speaks at The Grass Wagon in Council Bluffs on Wednesday.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Officials help passengers off a plane at Eppley Airfield onto waiting vehicles from Nebraska Medicine Center on Monday in Omaha. Several passengers from a cruise ship where a COVID outbreak took place, were brought to Nebraska for treatment.
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Millard South's Maddie Krull, center, hypes up her teammates before they take on Lincoln Southwest during a Class A state tournament game on Thursday.
KAYLA WOLF THE WORLD-HERALD
Hunter Sallis poses for a photo Wednesday, March 4, 2020, in downtown Omaha. Sallis is one of the top ranked high school basketball players in the country and holds offers from several elite college basketball programs.
KAYLA WOLF THE WORLD-HERALD
A patient in an isolation pod with the coronavirus is taken from an ambulance to the Nebraska Medicine Biocontainment unit on Friday, March 06, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Hasting's Makenna Asher hugs Bailey Kissinger after winning their Class C2 State championship game on Saturday.
KENNETH FERRIERA THE WORLD-HERALD
A Tabitha employee waves to a group of volunteers outside as they cheer supporting messages during a shift change on Thursday, March 19, 2020, at Tabitha Health Care Services in Lincoln.
KAYLA WOLF THE WORLD-HERALD
A healthcare professional walks from their tent before conducting drive-thru testing at Bryan LifePointe Campus on Tuesday, March 24, 2020, in Lincoln, Nebraska.
KENNETH FERRIERA THE WORLD-HERALD
Katherine Bergstrom plays with Charlie the cat near a safety table in A Novel Idea Bookstore on Thursday, March 26, 2020, in Lincoln, Nebraska. All customers who enter the store must visit the safety table to use hand sanitizer or wear gloves.
KENNETH FERRIERA THE WORLD-HERALD
Emily Struebing, a physician assistant, adjusts her face shield before meeting with patients at an appointment-only COVID-19 drive-thru testing site in Omaha on Tuesday, March 31, 2020.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
Leah Hanson, 9, and others visit their grandmother from outside the Douglas County Health Center in Omaha on Tuesday, April 7, 2020. With COVID restrictions in place, it was the only way the family could see each other.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
An image of Jesus is reflected in a puddle during an Easter drive up service at King of Kings Church on Saturday, April 11, 2020, in Omaha, Nebraska.
KENNETH FERRIERA THE WORLD-HERALD
Emma Hutchinson and her father, Ralph Hutchinson, stand for a photo in his Omaha home on Thursday, May 7, 2020. They were the first and second confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Nebraska. She spent weeks in the hospital and was put on a ventilator as she recovered.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
Police and protesters clash during a rally near 72nd and Dodge in Omaha on Friday, May 29, 2020.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
Kyra Parker flashes the peace sign while walking backwards in a cloud of tear gas during a protest at 72nd and Dodge Streets on Friday, May 29, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
The Omaha police mounted patrol are silhouetted in tear gas as they approach protesters at 72nd and Dodge Streets on Friday, May 29, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Law enforcement officers stand on 13th Street Sunday night while trying to disperse a crowd after the 8PM curfew.
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A protestor walks ahead of advancing law enforcement after the 8PM curfew in downtown Omaha on Sunday.
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Marchers walk east down Dodge Street towards Memorial park during a rally on Sunday, June 07, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
A woman holds a "History has its eyes on you" sign while marching up the hill at Memorial Park for a solidarity rally on Sunday in Omaha.
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Terrell McKinney, Leo Louis II and J Shannon hold their fists in the air with the crowd during a solidarity rally on Sunday at Memorial Park in Omaha.
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Protesters gather outside Cupcake Omaha in Omaha on Wednesday, June 24, 2020. They were calling on U.S. Senate candidate Chris Janicek, who owns the bakery, to step down from the race after a series of sexually inappropriate text messages he sent to members of his staff.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
J.J. Greve of Omaha, does a flip as friend Ilan Perez watches on his family’s trampoline in Elkhorn on Wednesday, June 24, 2020. The Perez family has an above ground pool, skate ramp and trampoline in their yard. With coronavirus and social distancing measures in places, families are trying to find new ways to have summer fun at home.
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More than a hundred people gather for a vigil to remember James Scurlock where he was shot. Tuesday marked one month since the shooting and killing of Scurlock, a 22-year-old black man, by Jake Gardner, a white bar owner, during a protest in downtown Omaha.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
Aiden Tupper picks ripe tomatoes with his siblings Janey, Blythe and Ronan at their home on Friday, July 17, 2020.
LILY SMITH THE WORLD-HERALD
Trey Kobza can't quite catch up to this double in left during the Nebraska Prospects baseball camp at Werner Park on Tuesday, June 23, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
2020 PHOTO: Junub Char attempts a shot while friends defend at the Bryant Center in North Omaha on July 20.
LILY SMITH, THE WORLD-HERALD
More than a hundred people attend a demonstration by Omaha-metro educators demanding a mask mandate before returning to classrooms at Memorial Park in Omaha front yard on Monday, August 3, 2020.
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Union Omaha's Elma N'For, left, celebrates a goal by Sebastián Contreras in the first half to tie the match against Forward Madison FC.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Leaves start to change color on trees as a jogger runs down the south side of the Dodge Street Pedestrian bridge, as viewed from Memorial Park on Wednesday, October 21, 2020.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
Elkhorn South's Katie Galligan (6) competes in the Elkhorn South vs. Papillion-La Vista South Metro Conference championship match at Papillion-La Vista South High School on Thursday, October 22, 2020.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
The Elkhorn student section storms the field as Omaha Skutt Catholic players walk off the field after a game on Friday.
LILY SMITH THE WORLD-HERALD
Millard North quarterback Jimmy Quaintance, left celebrates a touchdown with Charlie Quaintance, center, and Barrett Luce in the first quarter against Norfolk at Buell Stadium on Friday, October 23, 2020. Jimmy threw the pass to his brother Charlie.
CHRIS MACHIAN THE WORLD-HERALD
President-elect Joe Biden supporter Isaiah Ross holds a Biden for President flag to celebrate Biden's election on the corner of 72nd and Dodge Streets in Omaha on Saturday, November 7, 2020.
LILY SMITH THE WORLD-HERALD
Nebraska's Cam Taylor-Britt and Penn State's Jahan Dotson both go up for the ball in the end zone during their game on Saturday in Lincoln.
ANNA REED THE WORLD-HERALD
Iowa's Zach VanValkenburg catches a fumble from Nebraska's Adrian Martinez after he was hit by Iowa's Chauncey Golston.
LILY SMITH THE WORLD-HERALD
The Dec. 8 explosion at 4810 S. 51st St. killed homeowner Theresa Toledo, 73, her daughter Angela Toledo, 45, and Angela's son Alexander Toledo, 28.
CHRIS MACHIAN, THE WORLD-HERALD
Omaha Fire Department investigators said Thursday that a natural gas leak at the home was ignited, causing an explosion. But fire officials have not yet determined why there was a gas release into the home.
CHRIS MACHIAN, THE WORLD-HERALD
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