Tennessee truck drivers hope to be moved higher on the vaccination list
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Tennessee (WSMV) — Many of us are listening closely for when it’s our turn to take the vaccine. One group said they must be moved up from where they are now.
For 32 years, Denise Hayes’ husband has driven trucks. This past year has been so different from all the others because of COVID.
“I’m always worried,” Hayes said. “He goes south, he goes north, he goes west. Not everybody is wearing masks. Not everybody is washing their hands. I’m afraid he’s going to come in contact, and he’s 61-years-old.”
Hayes agrees healthcare workers need to get the vaccine first. She said truck drivers, in delivering essential items everywhere and making stops at distribution centers, should be moved up the list.
“I think the truck drivers have been put to the side,” Hayes said.
Dave Huneryager, president of the Tennessee Truck Association, told News4 he’s also been urging the state to move up truck drivers from Phase 2, where vaccinations are estimated for sometime in the second or third quarter of the year.
Huneryager said, “Every truck, every driver is crucial to the supply chain. My position is to protect them at all costs.”
A rep for Governor Bill Lee told News4, they’re dealing with a limited supply of vaccine given by the federal government, and as supply picks up, they’ll get through the phases more quickly.
For Hayes, the vaccinations are urgent for her husband.
“I’m so worried he’s gonna get COVID before he gets his vaccination, not to be able to survive it,” Hayes said. “It just scares me to death. I’ll continue to worry about him daily.”
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