Explainer-U.S. vaccine rollout's next challenge: Verifying who is 'essential'

FILE PHOTO: A healthcare worker receives a dose of the Moderna coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine at Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, California, U.S., December 22, 2020. REUTERS/Bing Guan/File Photo

(Reuters) - As U.S. industries push for their workers to receive early access to COVID-19 vaccines, local health departments and pharmacies face the challenge of verifying the identity of essential workers to ensure no one cuts the line.

The vaccination campaign under way is now focused on hospital staff and nursing homes, tightly controlled environments where verification is relatively simple. But beginning in January or February, Americans employed in a range of industries will be eligible for innoculation, provided they are essential frontline workers.