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Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign an executive order Monday expanding access to COVID-19 vaccines to some Floridians over the age of 50.

Speaking in Tallahassee before the start of the 2021 Legislative Session, DeSantis said firefighters, police officers and teachers will be next on the list to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

“I’ll be signing an executive order later today to expand vaccine eligibility to all sworn law enforcement personnel 50 and above, all firefighters aged 50 and above and all K-through-12 school personnel 50 and above,” DeSantis said.

The governor said it’s taking longer for COVID-19 vaccine appointments to get booked, and Florida is expecting 175,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine that got emergency FDA approval over the weekend.

“We probably could do all of that 50-up – K-through-12 personnel and police, fire – with just our J&J shipment,” DeSantis said.

Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine requires only one dose and does not need to be kept frozen. Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine is 85 percent effective at preventing severe COVID-19 cases globally.

WMFE is a partner with Health News Florida, a statewide collaborative reporting on health care.

Health reporting on WMFE is supported in part by AdventHealth.