COVID-19 vaccine: how many doses will New York get and when
'11.12.2020'
Vita Popova
10 December FDA approved the use of the vaccinedeveloped by Pfizer to vaccinate Americans against COVID-19. The first shipments of this vaccine may arrive in New York this weekend, December 12 and 13. How the state will distribute doses and who can get them first, the newspaper said. Lohud.
When and how many doses of vaccine will New York get
Most of the vaccines for COVID-19, and this is 170 thousand doses, will be delivered to New York City and Long Island. These regions will receive 72 and 000 doses, respectively.
The remaining vaccines will be distributed as follows: 19 doses will be sent to Mid Hudson, 200 to Finger Lakes (including Rochester), 11 to South Tier, and 500 to Mohawk Valley.
First of all, vaccinations will be given to residents of nursing homes and employees of these institutions, as well as employees of hospitals who are at great risk of contracting coronavirus infection.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this is the start of a massive vaccination campaign for millions of New Yorkers amid an increase in new cases.
"I cannot think of a more complex government operation," he said, and clarified: "The scale of vaccination, when you need to vaccinate every person in the state, is simply enormous."
The federal government has entrusted the supply of vaccines to the regions with FedEx and other private companies.
New York has designated 90 different locations for drug delivery across the state, including many hospitals that have facilities to properly store the vaccine. It is delivered in boxes, packed in dry ice, stored at -70 degrees Celsius.
New York City nursing home residents and staff will be vaccinated through a federal program in partnership with CVS and Walgreens, Cuomo said.
Pharmaceutical companies have advised that each person needs two shots to develop a sufficient immune response.
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In addition to the first shipment, New York expects to receive another 170 doses of the vaccine by the end of December.
After nursing homes, vaccination efforts will focus on health care workers at high risk of infection. This category includes emergency workers and ICU staff.
Hospitals will determine which members of this high-risk group will receive the vaccine first.
But plans to distribute millions of additional doses to New Yorkers outside the health care system remain unclear. Cuomo says the state is developing plans to identify where to vaccinate in communities. It is expected that vaccination of the population, including healthy adults, will begin in late January or early February 2021.
Earlier it was reported that vaccination of Americans will continue until June or even early fall 2021, before enough people become immune from this coronavirus disease.
What you need to know about the next steps for vaccination
On December 9, it became known about two residents of the UK who developed a severe allergic reaction to the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19. This has raised the question of whether it is safe for people with pre-existing allergies.
New York City is one of the few states that has set up expert panels to independently review any FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccine. Cuomo said on Dec. 9 that a New York expert group is in contact with FDA officials and expects to make a decision to approve the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine for use in New York without delay in distribution.
In addition to the initial Pfizer / BioNTech shipments, New York expects to receive an as-yet-undetermined shipment of vaccine developed by Moderna this month. The FDA will study the possibility of authorizing its emergency use on December 17.
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Federal regulators expect to ship about 40 million doses of vaccines nationwide by the end of December.
New York's share of total shipments in December could be about 2 million doses, enough to vaccinate nearly 1 million healthcare workers and nursing home residents.
Further, priority in vaccination will be given to workers in other areas, including employees of adult care institutions, then - workers in public transport and grocery stores.
Thereafter, priority will shift to New Yorkers over 65 and those with illnesses that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19, particularly cancer patients and those with lung disease.
As for the vaccination of children, it will be postponed until the end of 2021.
Everything You Wanted To Know About COVID-19 Vaccines In Five Pictures Available in this publication.
