LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Nebraska is likely to receive more than 60,000 doses of coronavirus vaccines this week.
The state Department of Health and Human Services said it expects to receive 59,450 doses of the vaccines this week as officials continue to focus on vaccinating everyone 65 and older across Nebraska.
It's not yet clear how many doses will be allocated this week to a new federal program that is distributing some virus shots through select Walmart stores and some community pharmacies. Last week, that program received 5,700 doses of the vaccines.
The state said nearly 200,000 Nebraskans so far have registered to be notified when they are eligible to receive the vaccine. Nebraska officials estimate that 6.5% of the state's population has received both required doses of the vaccine.
Nebraska is focusing most of its vaccination efforts on residents who are at least 65 years old, because statistics show they're most at risk of dying if they catch the virus.
On Wednesday, Gov. Pete Ricketts said his administration has also directed local public health agencies to give priority to first responders, law enforcement, correctional workers, and people who work on public utilities, among others.
"Those are all public safety priorities, so that's why they're in that order," the Republican governor said at a news conference.
But Ricketts has faced growing criticism from public school teachers who are included in Nebraska's current vaccination phase but haven't received formal approval to get a vaccine unless they're in another at-risk group. The plan approved by the governor's administration requires health officials to give 90% of their doses to the elderly. The remaining 10% is left to the discretion of local health officials, but they've been told to prioritize public safety personnel.
Nebraska reported 299 new virus cases and 14 deaths Tuesday to give the state 197,746 cases and 2,018 deaths since the pandemic began.
The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Nebraska decreased over the past two weeks, going from 520.57 new cases per day on Feb. 2 to 468.14 new cases per day on Tuesday.