The argument to vaccinate HCWs first is really based on a sense of fairness/justice. They were fighting COVID. We owe them. The competing ethics are those of compassion. COVID is exponentially age sensitive. Vaccinating by age first fights severe illness fastest. 1/

How to balance these two ethical concerns is the question. It is a question for ethicists, not epidemiologists and doctors. We can make clear comparisons about lives saved. Each elderly vaccination saves 285 times more lives than each HWC vaccination. 2/

That doesn't take away from the sense of justice for HCWs (and first responders) being on the front lines for 8 months. That fairness can be dealt with in ways that do not compromise our recovery and lead to more death. 3/

There is NO ARGUMENT that vaccinating HCWs first will optimally reduce severe disease and death. It will do the opposite. But it gives us justice. How much is that worth, and are there other ways to achieve it? 4/4