Michigan announced Friday that all residents 16 years of age and older will become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine on April 5, almost a month before May 1, as promised by President Joe Biden.
Related: This is when you are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in Michigan
People between the ages of 16 and 49 with certain medical conditions or disabilities will qualify from March 22, when children between the ages of 50 and 64 can start getting shot after a previous announcement. Two days later, on March 24, a federally selected regional mass vaccination site will open at Ford Field in Detroit to administer another 6,000 doses a day for two months.
“The safe COVID-19 vaccine is the most effective way to protect yourself, your family and others from the virus,” Governor Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement. “It will help the country return to normal and it will help the economy. “
The United States expects to have enough doses for adults by the end of May, but Biden warned that the process of effectively administering these doses will take some time. As of Wednesday, about 22 percent of Michigan’s population over the age of 16 had been completely or partially vaccinated.
In connection with: The White House, the state will open a regional vaccination site COVID-19 at Ford Field
The state health department said it could take “a few weeks” after April 5 for everyone who wants the vaccine to receive an appointment.
