First FEMA ‘surge team’ coming to Nevada to boost vaccinations
The first wave of a Federal Emergency Management Agency “surge team” will be deployed on Tuesday in southern Nevada, where it will assist state agencies and community partners with increasing COVID-19 vaccination rates during a recent spike in positive cases.
FEMA spokeswoman Veronica Verde told the Review-Journal Monday that the first wave will consist of about 85 staff members, who will work with the Nevada Division of Emergency Management and the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services to staff existing pop-up vaccination clinics, a call center and neighborhood canvassing efforts. A second wave is expected to arrive within the next week or two, Verde added.
Earlier this month, President Joe Biden’s administration announced the federal government was mobilizing such teams, consisting of staff from FEMA and the Centers for Disease Control, for states seeking aid with testing, outreach, vaccination and care needs.
Gov. Steve Sisolak said within hours of Biden’s announcement that Nevada would indeed seek that help, particularly for the Las Vegas region, where hospitalizations and positivity rates have spiked as tourism has begun to pick back up. The state and Clark County’s vaccination rates are below the national average, while the number of new infections is among the highest in the country.
Sisolak’s office said last week that community outreach toward unvaccinated populations will be a major focus of the multi-agency team and its community partners.
Verde referred questions on the specifics of the outreach and other assistance to Nevada Division of Emergency Management Chief David W. Fogerson, who did not respond to an inquiry.
Southern Nevada Health District spokeswoman Stephanie Bethel said the agency is currently awaiting information from Health and Human Services regarding the new federal assistance, while continuing to host pop-up vaccination clinics and conduct its own outreach.
“We encourage everyone age 12 and older to get vaccinated, especially as we continue to see an increase in cases,” Bethel said. “This increase continues to occur in unvaccinated people.”
Contact Rory Appleton at rappleton@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0276. Follow @RoryDoesPhonics on Twitter.