GREEN BAY, Wis. (NBC26) -- Members of the Northeast Wisconsin community are chomping at the bit.
"I haven't been to Green Bay in so long, I feel like the Fleet Farm is missing me," said Oconto resident and retired physician John Honish.
Northeast Wisconsinites are still experiencing the new normal.
John and his wife Pat Honish are one step closer to the 'old' normal.
"It'll [the vaccine] allow us to build up some antibodies so we can at least be a little bit more open as to where we go and who we meet with and things like that," John said.
After getting the vaccine, locals like the Honishes, who are eligible under the 65-plus group, are slowly getting back to life before Covid.
But the Wisconsin Department of Health Services doesn't know exactly when the general public can do the same.
"I know everyone wants me to have a crystal-clear crystal ball and it'll never be that clear," DHS Deputy Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk.
According to the DHS, the rest of Phase 1B will have access to a vaccine near March 1. But the state says it could take months after that date for others to get their hands on it.
"We will not be done [vaccinating] with people aged 65," Willems Van Dijk said in a Tuesday afternoon media briefing. "So I anticipate these phases will take another month or two and then we'll see where we're at with how much vaccine we have."
But for eligible groups like the Honishes, some are able to start seeing family members and feel more comfortable going out in public.
"We do go to coffee every morning over at Wayne's [Oconto]," John said. "And we got a group there who kind of all had the vaccine also. So we feel pretty safe there."
More than one out of every three Wisconsinites aged 65-plus snagged their first dose. In the next few months, the DHS says there's a possibility all will have the same chance.
"We'll see if we need to open to another more limited phase," Willems Van Dijk said. "Or will vaccine production be high enough that we may be able to open up to the broader public?"
But the Honishes are a sign of hope for some. The family is already planning its move back to the 'normal' normal.
"We're having Christmas in July because we haven't been with some of our family for a long time," Pat said. "So that'll be exciting."
The rest of Phase 1B includes education workers, Medicaid long-term care program members, some essential workers, non-frontline medical personnel and those in congregate living.
On Tuesday, the DHS reported the Badger State has given out nearly 800,000 doses in total.
During the media briefing, the state announced it's taking in around 89,000 vaccine doses per week from the federal government.
"That’s good news, but that’s 15,000 extra vaccines a week," Willems Van Dijk said. "That’s not going to get us to 7 million doses that we need a whole lot quicker."
Coupled with the new Retail Pharmacy Program and the potential for a Johnson & Johnson vaccine to enter Wisconsin in March, vaccinators have ramped up work over the past week.
"You may have noticed reports in the last few days about Wisconsin rising in the state rankings when it comes to vaccine administration," Willems Van Dijk said. "Yes… that is very exciting."
The DHS also touched on new Covid strains a select few Wisconsinites have tested positive for over the past week.
"What we’ve heard from other states that have detected a larger number is that a substantial number of them [who have contracted a new strain] have not had international travel," DHS Chief Medical Officer Ryan Westergaard said. "So that is evidence that there is community spread of these novel variants."
