Dear Patient,

As we begin a new year, the approval of two vaccines brings hope that we are turning the tide in our fight against COVID-19.

As front-line healthcare workers around the nation receive the first vaccinations, many of you are wondering when you’ll be receiving your vaccine. Information is changing daily, and right now it looks like most Mainers will receive a vaccine in late spring or early summer, based on the CDC’s phased rollout:

First phase

• Healthcare personnel who physically work in healthcare settings on a regular basis and have direct contact with patients
• Residents of long-term care facilities

Second phase

• Persons 75 years and older
• Frontline essential workers — fire fighters, police officers, corrections officers, food and agricultural workers, U.S. Postal Service staff, manufacturing workers, grocery store employees, public transit workers, and those in the educational sector (teachers, support staff, and daycare workers)

Third phase

• Persons 65 to 74 years old
• Persons 16 to 64 with high-risk medical conditions
• Other essential workers

InterMed is currently vaccinating individuals in the first phase and will expand to the second phase when directed by the Maine CDC. We hope to be able to do this in early spring, but our timeline is dependent on vaccine supply at the federal and state levels.

Rest assured that there will eventually be a vaccine for everyone. We will contact you as we approach the phase appropriate for you, and ask that you please not call our office for updates.

Two other items of note:

• The CDC recommends that those who have recovered from COVID should receive the vaccine to ensure the highest level of protection.
• If you receive any other vaccine — for seasonal flu, shingles, etc. — you should wait 14 days before being vaccinated for COVID.

Please speak with your provider if you have questions, or visit the Frequently Asked Questions page .

As always, please continue to follow CDC guidance of wearing a mask, maintaining social distance, and washing your hands regularly.

Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2021.

Dan Loiselle, MD
Chief Medical Officer