Gov. Ned Lamont announced this week that inmates could get the COVID-19 vaccine anywhere from January until May.

For Debra Martinez, of Meriden, that's a lot of uncertainty. Martinez's brother Isschar Howard is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole. Howard is the latest victim of a COVID-19 outbreak at Cheshire Correctional Institution.

"His heart rate is elevated, over 100, and it seems to be sustained that way at times," says Martinez. "His O2 is fluctuated down as low as 95."

Lamont has placed inmates in Phase 1B for a vaccine, which means they could get it as late May. So far, the state doesn't have any other details.

"Obviously some of the categories we've mentioned this afternoon are very broad, and there's much more to come in terms of further stratification," says Dr. Deidre Gifford, acting Connecticut health commissioner.

The ACLU says the longer inmates wait, the bigger the risk there is of correctional workers spreading COVID outside the prison gates

"We know that people who are incarcerated are among the most vulnerable in the state," says David McGuire, of the ACLU of Connecticut. "They are also potentially a vector for the virus for the entire state."

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Martinez says she understands that some people will ask why convicted criminals should jump the line.

"I'm not asking everyone to be able to jump the line," says Martinez. "I'm asking everyone to be treated equally."

The Connecticut DOC announced another inmate death happened today.

Gov. Lamont's office is promising more answers about who's going to get the vaccine and exactly when in the coming weeks.