More groups of Washington residents, some of them older adults, are expected to become eligible in April for the COVID-19 vaccines.

In a March 5 announcement, the state Department of Health said certain people ranging in age from 16 to 50-plus could start being vaccinated on the following schedule:

• By April 12, people who are 50 or older and have two or more comorbidities.
• Starting April 26, people who are 16 or older and have two or more comorbidities.

Comorbidities are certain medical conditions such as heart disease, cancer or diabetes which could make someone more vulnerable to severe complications from COVID-19.

Also effective April 26, vaccine eligibility will be extended to people living in congregate settings (including correctional facilities and group homes for disabled persons) and people experiencing homelessness that live in or access services in congregate settings.

The dates are projections. State officials said expanding eligibility will depend on vaccine supply and the amount of progress made in vaccinating earlier groups. The latter include adults 65 and older, adults 50 and older who live in multi-generation households, healthcare wrkers, first-responderrs, and residents and employees of nursing homes, assisted-living communities and other long-term care facilities. Preschool through high school educators, public school staff and childcare providers were added to that list March 2 after a nationwide directive from the White House aimed at returning students and teachers to in-person learning and teaching.

The state Department of Health has information about vaccine eligibility availability and scheduling of vaccination appointments at 1-800-525-0127, doh.wa.gov, and covid.vaccine@doh.wa.gov.

Governor Jay Inslee toured a mass COVID-19 vaccination site in Puyallup on March 4, talking to healthcare workers and volunteers about their efforts to vaccinate as many as 2,500 people a day. The governor also named one of the site’s administrators, Sheri Bebbington, an honorary Washingtonian of the Day. Bebbington contracted COVID-19 in April 2020 and struggled with life-threatening complications before recovering. Now she helps thousands of people get vaccinated, Inslee said.