First COVID-19 vaccines headed to Sacramento after approvals by feds and California
The first Sacramento shipment of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine will arrive via truck at UC Davis Medical Center early this week, marking what many say is the turning point in the 10-month pandemic, officials there said.
The vaccine won emergency use approval Friday evening from the federal Food and Drug Administration, and trucks began leaving the pharmaceutical company’s Michigan manufacturing plant Sunday morning for deliveries nationally.
A separate scientific group convened by California, Washington, Oregon and Nevada gave its blessing as well to the vaccine on Sunday morning.
“The Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup today completed their concurrent and thorough review of the federal process and has confirmed the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is safe and efficacious,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said in a joint statement.
Some shipments will be delivered via express air freight.
UC Davis officials say they will begin administering shots to front-line hospital workers as soon as they get it, if given the go-ahead. “We are ready and willing,” said Dr. David Lubarsky, UC Davis Health CEO.
Lubarsky initially said he expected the vaccine by Monday. UC officials have since said they expect it early this week.
His Sacramento medical center is one of a handful designated regional vaccine repositories in California. Lubarsky described it as the official launch of the counter-offensive to the coronavirus pandemic, akin to D-Day during World War II.
“It is a defining moment in the battle to defeat an infectious enemy,” he said. “It is not the end of the war. (But) we are in a position where we can defeat this virus and return to normal life. And it will be in the year 2021.”
In Sacramento, initial shipments also are expected to be delivered this week to several health care systems, including Kaiser Permanente, Dignity Health, Sutter Health and Vibra Hospital in Folsom, according to county health officials.
The initial vaccine doses will be given to hospital workers who deal with COVID-19 patients or suspected virus patients. Doses also are expected to be delivered to long-term care facilities where older and more at-risk residents will be among the first to be vaccinated.
California has been allocated an initial limited supply of 327,000 doses in this initial shipment, Newsom said last week.
Lubarksy said the Sacramento region overall could get about 30,000 doses in the initial shipment next week. Sacramento County health officials say they expect the county to receive 14,625 doses in the first shipment.
UC Davis Health says it could potentially store about 400,000 vaccines at a time.
Doses at some point also will be stored at pharmacies, notably CVS and Walgreens, which will offer shots similarly to how they offer flu vaccines.
A second round of vaccine doses is expected to arrive in California later this month, boosting the state’s December allotment to 2.16 million doses. The second allotment could include a vaccine produced by Moderna after it is vetted by the FDA.
Health officials said they expect shipments to ramp up in January, with potentially 6 million doses available by the end of that month. The state population is 40 million.
Later doses will be distributed to people who are at higher risk and work in essential jobs, then will be made available likely in spring to the general public.
Dignity Health chief Laurie Harting said she believes Dignity will be getting vaccine shipments this week.
“This whole moment has been unbelievable for many reasons,” she said. “Now, thank goodness, we are at the (doorstep) of vaccinations. We can get to herd immunity. Summer could bring some sense of normality again.”
Kaiser Permanente and Sutter Health officials said they are also prepping for the vaccine arrival.
“Kaiser Permanente has applied to be a vaccine provider in every market where we operate,” the company said in a statement. “Kaiser Permanente has decades of experience delivering vaccinations safely and efficiently, strictly following public health and medical guidance.”
Sutter Health officials said they are working with county health officials “to coordinate allotments of the COVID-19 vaccine.”
This story was originally published December 13, 2020 at 10:47 AM.