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Whose Underlying Conditions Count for Priority in Getting the Vaccine?

Yenny has a rare, progressive lung disease known as LAM (lymphangioleiomyomatosis). After losing her disability benefits a few years ago, she can no longer afford medication that slows down her lungs' deterioration, and her lungs have dropped to 33 percent functionality. When they hit 30 percent, she will need a transplant. For now, she relies on an oxygen concentrator to help her sleep and go on walks. 

Yenny has a rare, progressive lung disease known as LAM (lymphangioleiomyomatosis). After losing her disability benefits a few years ago, she can no longer afford medication that slows down her lungs' deterioration, and her lungs have dropped to 33 percent functionality. When they hit 30 percent, she will need a transplant. For now, she relies on an oxygen concentrator to help her sleep and go on walks. 

“Most days I wake up with so much phlegm I can hear the crackle when I lay on my back and when I breathe,” Yenny tells me in a text message. The prospect of contracting COVID-19, with its notorious risk of respiratory distress, is harrowing for people who have trouble breathing on a daily basis.

When will Yenny get vaccinated? Possibly at the same time as any healthy person her age.  Read more. 

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