NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association has sent letters to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the National Governors Association to request that the telecom industry’s technicians be accorded priority status in the COVID-19 vaccination hierarchy the CDC has recommended and that states are now tasked with distributing.
The NATE letters make it clear that the Association is not in any way advocating that communications infrastructure technicians should be given consideration before healthcare personnel or vulnerable populations, such as those in long-term care facilities.
Given the designation provided by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency that those engaged in communications infrastructure operations, maintenance and restoration are essential workers, NATE believes that the industry’s essential service workforce should be elevated and included in the Phase 1b status along with other specifically identified frontline and high-priority service sectors.
