Creating ‘Healthier Communities’: Milwaukee County Starts In-Home COVID-19 Vaccinations

Milwaukee County residents who have difficulty leaving their homes can now have the COVID-19 vaccine brought to them.

The county has launched a free vaccination program called Healthy Homes for homebound Medicare recipients. Nationally, approximately 6 percent of people on Medicare have trouble leaving their house. In Milwaukee County, that equates to about 9,500 people.

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said through the efforts of caregivers, about 60 percent of these individuals have already received the vaccine. But he said people’s unique needs shouldn’t be a barrier to adequate health care, which is why Healthy Homes launched Thursday.

“Milwaukee County is committed to doing everything we can to ensure that anyone who wants a COVID-19 vaccine can get one,” Crowley said. “It shouldn’t be the case that you aren’t vaccinated, or that your general health care takes a bad turn, just because you cannot access the medical system traditionally. We can create healthier communities not by just making services accessible, but by physically meeting residents where they are and connecting them to needed services like life-saving COVID-19 vaccines.”

According to the latest vaccination report issued by Milwaukee County, 731,946 people, or about 42 percent, in the county have received at least one vaccination.

Crowley said the at-home vaccination program will use data to drive decision-making and program participants will be in part prioritized by their risk of developing a severe case of COVID-19.

The program builds upon the work already underway by the City of Milwaukee, local health departments, and other local vaccinators to reach this population by taking a hyper-targeted approach, Crowley said.

“We are doing everything we can to break down barriers to accessing care, including receiving a COVID-19 vaccine,” Crowley said. “We need the community to join us and help connect those in need with available services, including this at-home vaccine option.”

The state Department of Health Services can’t mandate similar at-home programs because Wisconsin is a so-called “home rule state,” so how residents are vaccinated is determined by local or tribal health departments, said Jennifer Miller, a DHS spokesperson.

“The goal of DHS is to get the COVID-19 vaccine into the arms of anyone who wants one and to eliminate the barriers that may stand in the way of some people getting the vaccine by meeting them where they’re at — their neighborhood, church, community center, library, or their own home,” Miller said.

To schedule an at-home COVID-19 vaccination appointment, visit www.healthymke.com/healthyhomes or call 414-257-7468.