SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Prioritization for Blood Cancer Patients

The COVID-19 pandemic has created difficult times for everyone, but the morbidity and mortality have not been evenly distributed. Blood cancer patients have been proven to be among those with the worst outcomes.

Some countries and states have acted on this disparity by prioritizing cancer patients among the most at risk, but many have not. CLL Society has discovered large variations across the United States as to when CLL patients are being scheduled to receive the coronavirus vaccine. In some states, it could be many months before we qualify to be vaccinated, even if all goes according to plan.

When there is a crisis, time matters, and we as a country have always protected the most vulnerable first. A this moment, in this pandemic, the most vulnerable are us.

Some of us may have felt helpless at times, but now there is something we can do try to make a difference. Please choose your state and if it has not already prioritized cancer patients, forward the linked letter to your state health department officials (we provide everything you need below) and ask them to quickly consider moving CLL and other cancer patients to the front of the COVID-19 vaccine line. Ask your friends and family to do the same. Lives will be saved, maybe even your own.

Stay strong, stay safe. We are all this together.

The Team at CLL Society

The COVID-19 vaccine eligibility criteria in each state has undergone constant reassessment and change. Your state specific information provided here was accurate as of January 2021.

For detailed instructions on downloading and printing the letter, click here.