COVID vaccine arrives

CHENEY – Doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine hit the tarmac at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Monday - with a final destination in the arms of health care workers and first responders this week, along with some of the more vulnerable individuals to the infection as early as next week.

According to a state Department of Health Dec. 14 news release, Washington has received 62,400 doses of Pfizer's vaccine - the first of a half dozen vaccines being developed. The first distribution will go to 17 sites across 13 counties in the state, with Spokane Regional Health District officials confirming the county is scheduled to receive at least 3,900 doses.

"DOH (Department of Health) is not releasing the names of the individual facilities that have been approved for distribution," SRHD Communications Manager Kelli Hawkins said. "However, the initial shipments will be sent to approved hospital systems throughout the state for high-risk health care workers within those facilities and high-risk first responders first."

The Pfizer vaccine is a two-dose regime given 21 days apart. Clinical trials have shown it's 95 % effective at preventing COVID-19 infection starting seven days after the second dose, with individuals considered fully protected within 1-2 weeks after that.

Regional Health District officials say there are about 22 county healthcare organizations waiting on approval to disseminate the vaccine, with Providence and Multicare likely two of the first candidates. Both organizations possess the capability to store the vaccine at the required temperature - 94 degrees below zero - and to use their own staff and processes to vaccinate.

According to the state's vaccine guidance, healthcare workers and first responders working in high-risk health care settings that pose the greatest risk for exposure to the virus will be inoculated first under 1A of the first phase. Cheney Fire Chief Tom Jenkins said he didn't have information yet on a timeframe for inoculation of emergency medical technicians, but according to an email, the county fire chiefs' Spokane County EMS Council has set up a First Responder Vaccination Task Force, holding a first meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 15.

"This is a small work group, by design, in an effort to quickly develop a program for vaccinating first responders county-wide," city of Spokane Fire Department Integrated Medical Services Manager Mike Lopez said in an email.

The task force is working with Dr. Jim Nania, county EMS protocol director, and Interim Regional Health Care Medical Officer Dr. Francisco Velasquez on a vaccine plan.

Also in Phase 1A are residents and staff of nursing homes, assisted living facilities and "other community-based, congregate living settings" where individuals are age 65 and older. One of these is the Cheney Care Center.

"We are waiting to hear from our pharmacy, maybe next week," Care Center Executive Director Keith Fauerso said when asked if they had received word on a vaccination timetable.

Fauerso added their "pharmacy" is one in Western Washington set up for similar facilities. In its release, the state noted many residents of long-term care facilities will get the vaccine via a federal pharmacy program beginning in late December, with the program "drawing down" from the Washington vaccine allotment.

Department of Health officials estimate around 500,000 people in Washington will be eligible for the vaccine in Phase 1A. According to initial two-month projections from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, using Washington's approximate 2 % of the U.S. population, the state expects to receive 150,000 – 350,000 does in the first month and 500,000 – 1 million doses in the second.

"We believe that if everything goes according to plan, we'll have most people in Washington vaccinated by mid-summer," Michele Roberts, one of the leaders of the DOH COVID-19 vaccine planning group said.

The federal government has allocated an estimated 222,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine by the end of December, with regular shipments beginning in January. Additionally, a similar vaccine developed by Moderna could be approved by the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use later this week, providing an additional 183,000 doses to the state by the end of the month.

"As more quantities of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine are received (and possibly of Moderna within the next week), vaccine administration will be able to accommodate other groups in the 1A and 1B categories," Hawkins said.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].