News Photo by Crystal Nelson A truck pulls into the Johnson Street entrance to MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena on Thursday. MidMichigan Health has been given an additional 2,500 doses of vaccine from the state to administer to vulnerable populations.

ALPENA — MidMichigan Health will receive additional doses of the COVID-19 vaccination to put into the arms of Michigan’s most vulnerable populations.

State Health Department officials announced this week MidMichigan Health is among 22 pilot projects statewide to be awarded 35,800 doses of COVID-19 vaccine to help enhance the state’s vaccine equity strategy.

Richard Bates, regional vice president of medical affairs at MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena, said the pilot program gives another 2,500 doses of vaccine to the health system.

“We applied basically to receive additional vaccines so that through our clinics we would be able to provide more doses to people in our community,” he said.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many additional doses MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena would receive.

State officials said the program’s goal is to help remove barriers to vaccine access for Michiganders 60 and older who live in communities with a high Social Vulnerability Index and high COVID-19 mortality rates.

The index uses census data — such as socioeconomic status, family composition, and disability — to identify places that may need support before, during or after disasters.

Bates said MidMichigan Health serves a significant number of people who are in that vulnerable population. He said vaccines would be utilized at all of the vaccine clinics throughout the health system.

The pilot projects are allowed to expand vaccination to include people ages 50 to 59 with disabilities or comorbid conditions if those projects have additional capacity in their project.

Bates said people 50 years and older with medical conditions became eligible to receive the vaccine on Monday and that people 50 and older will be able to receive the vaccine on March 22.

“We’re going to be able to utilize this vaccine to help in those populations as well,” Bates said.

Bates said the health system expects to receive the vaccines this week. Vaccine doses must be administered within two weeks of receiving the vaccine, with the second doses of the vaccine being provided four weeks later.

State officials have set a goal to get 70% of Michiganders age 16 and older vaccinated as quickly as possible.

As of Thursday, 25,308 vaccines have been administered to Northeast Michigan residents. State data shows there is a little over 18% vaccine coverage in Alpena and Presque Isle counties, nearly 17% in Montmorency County and a little over 16% in Alcona County.

Meanwhile Public health officials on Thursday reported six newly infected or probably infected Northeast Michiganders, including four Alpena County residents and two Presque Isle County residents. No new infections were reported for Montmorency County and Alcona County residents.

As of Feb. 18, local public health agencies have reported confirmed and suspected infections as one number.

Based on that data, 2,988 Northeast Michiganders have been confirmed or suspected infected since the pandemic hit Michigan in mid-March. Of those, 105 have died.

As of Thursday, no one was hospitalized at MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena with coronavirus infection, or in intensive care, according to state data. The hospital was 32% full.

As of Thursday, 36 people were hospitalized with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 infection across the state-designated, 18-county health care region that includes Alpena, Presque Isle, and Montmorency counties, according to state data.

The last death was reported Wednesday.

Local public health officials have stopped tracking recoveries.