At her recent press conference, Governor Kim Reynolds announced that all adults in the state of Iowa will be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine starting April 5. In early March, BVU distributed 150 Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines to students, staff, faculty, and spouses/partners who qualified at the time.

“With increasing vaccine supply and expanded assistance for those who need it, I’m confident that everyone who wants to be vaccinated will have a chance to do so,” Reynolds said. “I think the future looks pretty good for getting Iowans vaccinated.”

BVU’s President, Dr. Brian Lenzmeier has been waiting for the day that COVID-19 vaccine eligibility would be broader. “I am very happy because it means the light is at the end of the tunnel,” said Lenzmeier. “Vaccines are the best way to defeat viruses, and the vaccines we currently have on the market are excellent.”

The university has prepared for vaccine distribution by sending out an interest survey to students, so they can gather an idea of how many of them are planning to receive a vaccine before the end of the semester. This will also be helpful in knowing what percentage of people are vaccinated for the fall, and how many doses will be needed to vaccinate those who wish to be.

Plans for the official vaccine distribution at BVU are still up in the air. This is because public health is still deciding where they plan to place new vaccine clinics and how many doses will be available. There is talk of organizing a vaccination clinic on campus for students.

“They (COVID-19 vaccination clinics) get allocated so many vaccines per week,” said Director of Health Services, Lorie Stanton. “They keep getting allocations as long as they use the number of doses given the week before, then they keep getting them.”

Stanton encourages anyone who has any questions, comments, or concerns about receiving a COVID-19 vaccine to contact health services for more information.  “There has to be a percentage of students that are going to get vaccinations before we can get back to doing normal things in the fall,” says Stanton.

The Storm Lake Hy-Vee pharmacy currently has COVID-19 vaccine appointments available for the months of April and May. For more information on how to get vaccinated in Buena Vista County, please visit www.hy-vee.com/COVID.