The COVID-19 vaccine is coming. How York, Lancaster, Chester officials are preparing
Two major drug companies have moved forward this month to seek federal approval on COVID-19 vaccines. Officials have said the first batch of shots could be administered this month. That has pushed state and local officials to quickly form distribution plans.
And although much is still undecided in York, Lancaster and Chester counties, officials are confident critical populations will have access to the vaccine.
South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control officials are working to identify statewide health care providers to distribute the vaccine once it’s approved, and ensure locations can effectively store doses, which require extremely cold temperatures, officials told reporters last week.
Two companies — Pfizer and Moderna — have now applied for authorization from the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use of their coronavirus vaccines. Preliminary data show Pfizer’s vaccine is 95% effective and Moderna’s is about 94% effective. State health officials have emphasized that, despite the rush for approval, no critical steps will be skipped in ensuring the vaccine is safe.
“This vaccine is going through all the same steps any vaccine would and that’s for the protection of the American public,” Dr. Jane Kelly, assistant state epidemiologist, said. “We’ve got good preliminary data it’s efficacious, but not all the information is in. We need to get all of the information to make certain that this is a vaccine, that is also safe and safe in all the persons that we wish to vaccinate.”
A panel advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention voted Tuesday to recommend that, in the United States, health care workers, nursing home residents and employees, should receive coronavirus vaccines first.
DHEC is working out the details on when state health officials will provide the vaccine to nursing home residents and staff, but that population will be included at some point in the first phase, state epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said.
As of Nov. 18, nearly 175 statewide facilities had applied to become a vaccine provider, DHEC’s immunization program manager Stephen White said.
However, not all organizations that enroll will receive doses at the same time, White said. DHEC will give out vaccines to specific providers based on which part of the population is scheduled to receive it in DHEC’s distribution plan.
“Just because they enroll does not mean that they will receive vaccination,” White said.
How are Chester, Lancaster hospitals preparing?
Chester and Lancaster hospitals have started to prepare to vaccinate staff.
Brian Grieg, chief nursing officer for the Medical University of South Carolina’s Chester and Lancaster centers, told The Herald the facilities are planning to receive the “first wave” of vaccines, which will go to hospital and nursing staff.
With three vaccines “in the pipeline,” Grieg said, referring to Moderna, Pfizer and Oxford University’s vaccine efforts, he said he expects to begin distributing vaccines mid-December.
The vaccine will be mandatory for hospital staff, Grieg said, unless they have a religious medical exemption. “You must have one of the three,” he said.
“The hospitals have established times for staff to get vaccinated, as well as leaders who can vaccinate other staff at any time,” Grieg said. “There will be plenty of opportunities.”
As more information about the COVID-19 vaccine reaches the public, the hospital will begin to further their distribution plans, Grieg said.
How are emergency officials preparing?
York County officials said it is too soon for a concrete vaccination plan, but they are doing their best to prepare.
“We do have plans for mass-dispensing,” York County Emergency Management Director Chuck Haynes told the Herald. “Whether those exact plans will be used or whether they will just be altered, we’re still waiting to hear that.”
The county is still waiting on further information from state and federal agencies, Haynes said. But he is confident in the county’s preliminary plans to get the vaccines to the public.
“We have done as much as we can at this point,” he said. “Right now, we should be in pretty good shape.”
Chester County Deputy Director of Emergency Management Ed Darby said Chester also is waiting for further guidance. “We need to know when (the vaccine) is coming to make a plan,” he said.
Darby said he suspects that hospital staff, EMS staff and other first responders will receive vaccines first.
“It is coming,” he said. “They’ll figure it out, but we have not been informed of any real plan to administer.”
It is possible that testing sites will turn to vaccination sites, but it is too soon to tell, especially with some vaccines requiring ultra-cold storage, he said.
For now, testing in Chester will continue with no plans to stop, Darby said.
General public must wait
Although DHEC is still finalizing its distribution plan, one fact is certain — members of the general public will not have access to doses in December.
“Not everyone who wants to be vaccinated, when the first dose has become available, will be able to receive it first,” Bell said.
State officials don’t know how many doses South Carolina will initially receive, but they told reporters the first batch will go to “critical populations,” like health care workers, White said.
The state’s second distribution phase will expand to include more of the general population, but doses are still expected to be limited, White said. In the final phase, officials expect to have a larger supply.
“The availability of the vaccine for the general public is really several months from now,” Bell said.
This story was originally published December 2, 2020 at 11:33 AM.
