New COVID-19 Resource: Vaccine Fact Sheet

by Heather Purcell, Irwin Siegel Agency

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, it became quickly apparent that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) were suffering from poorer recovery outcomes. By the end of 2020, evidence began to mount, pointing toward significant concern regarding this population. Fair Health, operating an independent database of neutral health care information, published a claims analysis titled Risk Factors for COVID-19 Mortality among Privately Insured Patients, which assessed private insurance claims data relating to COVID-19. The findings, while in-line with our expectations, were still disheartening to see in black and white. According to their findings, “Across all age groups, COVID-19 patients with intellectual disabilities and related conditions had the third highest risk of COVID-19 death.” In response, we turned to our partnership in order to create and share supportive resources, especially this COVID-19 vaccine guide.

We are very happy to have partnered with IntellectAbility, formally Health Risk Screening, Inc., in 2019. Established on the principles of person-centered practices, Dr. Craig Escudè and his team are able to provide tools and training to support vulnerable populations. Through IntellectAbility, we provide insured organizations with an exclusively produced training, The Fatal Five, which focuses on identifying and preventing unnecessary health risks and other vulnerabilities in people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

With health risk prevention for the I/DD community as the goal, we were happy to organize our efforts toward a common goal, the creation of this COVID-19 resource. Both of our organizations maintain a central focus: reducing risk in the lives of people with I/DD. Through this partnership, we are excited to share our COVID-19 Vaccine Fact Sheet.