Dear Berkeley Law Students,
I hope you are healthy and doing as well as possible under the circumstances. I have promised to let you know everything I learn about the availability of vaccinations. At this time, the campus is not providing vaccinations other than for those who already received a first shot on campus. The campus and UCOP are hoping to acquire vaccines and to be able to vaccinate all students. They are not there yet and not currently receiving vaccines other than for second shots.
I have been asked about whether those of you who are employed as Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs) and Graduate Student Researchers (GSRs) are eligible for vaccines. The answer is that under the California Department of Public Health Guidelines you may be considered eligible as employees of an educational institution. This is up to each vaccine provider, which makes its own determination of eligibility. Here is the campus message about this which just came:
“We understand that graduate and professional students have a complicated relationship to the categories of ‘staff,’ and ‘faculty,’ as well as now navigating new categories of ‘remote’ and ‘in-person.’ Whether you are working remotely, in-person, a Graduate Student Instructor, a Graduate Student Researcher, Reader, Tutor, Student Assistant, or any other form of campus employee, vaccine providers may consider you to be eligible as an employee under the CDPH guidelines to receive a vaccine. Each vaccinator is permitted to make its own eligibility determination based on its supply of vaccine and its interpretation of CDPH criteria, and we are providing the best guidance we can based on what we know at this moment.
Therefore, if you are a graduate student employed by the campus, we encourage you to contact your health care provider and/or visit the CDPH “My Turn” website to check your eligibility, receive a notification when vaccines and appointments are available in your area, or to book an appointment. Please be sure to review instructions from providers carefully; their criteria may be more restrictive than the state’s, and may change daily depending on vaccine allocation and changing state guidelines.”
I promise to keep you posted of all that I learn. I so look forward to when we all can be vaccinated, hopefully soon!
Warmly,
Erwin