Wauwatosa EMS staff receive COVID-19 vaccine

WAUWATOSA, Wis. (CBS 58) --- Wauwatosa Fire Department emergency medical services staff received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday, Jan. 6.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services is responsible for coordinating logistics and allocation of the vaccine. Officials say the Wauwatosa Health Department is also working with local and state partners to prepare vaccinating people.

"The Wauwatosa Health Department has enrolled as a vaccinator and is working on plans to receive and administer vaccines in 2021," Interim Health Officer Laura Stephens said. "Our team has been working hard over the past 10 months to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and we are excited to play a roll in this first step toward ending it. We have ongoing communication with DHS and will follow their guidance for vaccine distribution." 

Wauwatosa is currently in Phase 1A of the vaccine prioritization guidelines. That includes healthcare workers and residents and staff of long term care facilities, officials say. The first doses in Wisconsin are going to frontline health care providers and skilled nursing facility staffa nfd residents.

According to a news release, Phase 1B will begin after those in Phase1A are vaccinated. Phase 1B is likely to include those over the age of 75 and non-health care frontline essential workers. Phase 1C will include those aged between 65 and 74 and those aged 16-64 with high-risk medical conditions and essential workers not included in earlier phases. 

The EMS team at Wauwatosa Fire Department represents frontline people responding to patients at risk throughout the pandemic, according to officials. The Wauwatosa Fire Department responded to over 7,000 calls for fire and EMS services in 2020.