Page 29 - HOH_Neat

A2 UP FRONT
Friday 13 November 2020
Still, "there will still be some that
slip through the cracks," said Ann
Lewis, CEO of CareSouth Carolina,
which runs the health centers.
Distributing doses is another issue.
The Pfizer vaccine, which could
be the first to get the green light,
comes in shipments of nearly 1,000
doses.
"A minimum of 1,000 doses makes
it very difficult to get smaller facili-
ties vaccinated," said Rich Lakin,
director of Utah's immunization
program.
Shipments might go to a hospital
that is easily accessible to health
care workers from multiple sites,
Lakin said.
"They may have to drive to that
hospital to get the vaccine," he
said.
In North Dakota, providers receiv-
ing fewer than 1,000 doses will
have them shipped to a state
warehouse that can maintain the
ultra-cold storage.
"We'll break them down into the
smaller quantities and then drive
In this Oct. 26,2020, file photo, a medical worker stands at a COVID-19 state drive-thru testing site at UTEP, in El Paso, Texas. them to the provider," said Molly
Associated Press Howell, the state's immunization di-
rector.
Continued from Front registries, which will be used for manages the state's immunization State and local health depart-
State and local officials are also COVID-19. registry. ments will break up and redistrib-
planning for the likelihood that the To better understand whether at- "And they don't do it every day. ute shipments of other vaccines,
first shipments will not be enough risk groups are getting vaccinated, They do it whenever," Reid said. which are expected to require or-
to cover everyone in high-priority the CDC wanted providers to re- State officials in Utah plan to up- ders of at least 100 doses, for small-
groups. port the race and ethnicity of the date the inventory, rather than ask er providers that do not need that
Similar preparations are happen- people they vaccinate. But phar- each provider to enter it, he said. many. But even if distribution goes
ing at the federal level. Welch lis- macies and other providers that States are also working to expand smoothly, officials worry people will
tened in last week on a "war gam- do not always collect that informa- the number of pharmacies, doc- not want the shots.
ing" session by the U.S. Department tion objected. tors' offices and other providers "If there's going to be any real
of Health and Human Services. "We have to be careful not to that can administer COVID-19 vac- challenge, to be honest with you,
For the vaccination effort to get put too many administrative bur- cines, to ensure shots are conve- it's going to be convincing folks to
off the ground, state officials have dens on providers that are already niently available. get the vaccine," said Patrick Peer,
been readying systems to track stressed," said Mitchel Rothholz of But enrollment can be time-con- who runs the Good Neighbor Com-
supplies and who has been vacci- the American Pharmacists Asso- suming, Reid said, because pro- munity Health Center in Columbus,
nated. That information will be fed ciation, an industry group. viders often need help filling out Nebraska.
into a national network and will be He said providers have been told forms, getting technical systems So far, states have received far less
critical in giving federal health offi- they will have the option to leave working and going through inspec- money than they say they need
cials an up-to-date picture of vac- that information out. tions to ensure they can meet stor- for vaccine distribution, and it's
cinations around the country. Providers will also have to report age requirements. The Pfizer vac- unclear if any more federal help is
Providers such as pharmacies and vaccination information daily, cine needs to be kept at minus 70 coming. Public health groups es-
doctors' offices will also need to be which will be an adjustment for degrees Celsius (minus 94 F). timate that an additional $8.4 bil-
able to look up records, so people those that typically enter data Given the hurdles, Reid does not lion is needed to pay for staff, data
do not have to return to the same weekly or every couple of weeks, expect smaller pharmacies to be- systems and outreach and supply
place for their second shot. More state officials said. come COVID-19 vaccine provid- costs.
than one vaccine could also be- To help people find doses in their ers. In rural Minnesota this fall, masked
come available, and doses can- area, the CDC wants to put infor- Because of the likely need for two nurses in traffic vests reached into
not be mixed and matched. mation on a vaccine finder web- doses given three or four weeks cars to give passengers flu shots.
"We not only have to bring peo- site, which will be updated each apart, the Centers for Disease The drive-thru clinic was a way to
ple back for a second dose, but day with the latest inventory. Control and Prevention is consid- social distance in the pandemic,
need to make sure that we have Supplying that inventory informa- ering ways of helping Americans but it also served as a test run for
very good records of which vac- tion might be a staffing strain for remember the second shot, in- someday administering a CO-
cine they received the first time," some providers, including a hos- cluding issuing cards that people VID-19 vaccine.Carlton County
said Dr. Jinlene Chan of Maryland's pital in Utah that said it only has would get with their first shot, akin has purchased mobile vaccina-
health department. one person who currently enters to the polio immunization cards tion stations to prepare for similar
States already have immunization the information, said Jon Reid, who many older Americans remember mass clinics for the coronavirus. But
carrying. county health officials are also sud-
Many people will likely need addi- denly dealing with a spike in cases,
tional prodding. and many questions remain unan-
In a rural part of South Carolina, swered, including when a vaccine
one community health center is might arrive and how many doses
planning multiple reminders, in- there will be. "It's all kind of up in
cluding text messages and calls the air," said Jenny Barta, a public
from health workers. health nurse specialist.q