POUGHKEEPSIE – Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro has asked Governor Cuomo to provide COVID-19 vaccine supplies for individuals with intellectual and development disabilities. The county executive said reduction in allotments due to the state prioritizing supplying its own mass vaccination sites are “deeply troubling.”
Molinaro asked Cuomo to prioritize vaccinating that at-risk population by “ensuring group homes and congregate care facilities that serve individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities have access to the vaccine; providing flexibility and supplying doses to counties with the capacity to vaccine this population is critical; and clarifying the definition of ‘congregate care site’ to ensure it included certified day programs.”
The county executive said individuals with intellectual and development disabilities, “especially those who live in group homes or in congregate care settings, face an immense risk from COVID-19.” He said those facilities “continue to suffer from the ravages of this pandemic as the greatest protections we have are not always practical for many of these individuals, as some struggle to understand social distancing and have difficulty wearing masks.”
Molinaro said many residents of those facilities “have gone without critical services or received a lower standard of service due to safety constraints, which are necessary in many cases, yet still damaging.” He said technology has allowed many people to acclimate to social distancing, “mitigating to an extent the damage done by this pandemic. However, for many individuals with intellectual and development disabilities, technology is a poor substitute for in-person services and supports.”
He said access to a vaccine “is a means to not only protect this population and those that serve them, but also ensure high-quality care and services can be provided safely.”
