CARSON CITY (KTNV) — The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services reports it received an update on Thursday from the Department of Defense and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the state’s second allocation of the December COVID-19 vaccine.
The second allocation of Pfizer’s vaccine is expected to be 17,550 doses and is slated to go directly to the state’s pharmacy partners, CVS and Walgreens, to vaccinate staff and residents of skilled nursing and long-term facilities. But, originally, the state says it anticipated receiving 30,255 doses.
This equates to a 42 percent drop, according to the Department of Health and Human Services
The state has already received 25,350 doses of Pfizer vaccine this week and vaccinations of hospital staff have been taking place. Of those doses, 17,550 were available for the state to distribute to counties for acute care hospitals and 7,800 were set aside for staff and residents of long-term care facilities who will be vaccinated by our pharmacy partners.
Each county and local health authority has developed its own distribution plan for the COVID-19 vaccine and will implement the process individually while following the Nevada COVID-19 Vaccine Playbook, according to the DHHS.
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Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak released the following statement following Thursday's announcement:
"States need clear and precise updates and information from the federal government as we continue the large and complex process of distributing this critical COVID-19 vaccine across the nation and here in Nevada. To slash allocations for States – without any explanation whatsoever – is disruptive and baffling.
The State’s vaccination team has done tremendous work in the last eight months to plan and prepare for this historic distribution process. I am proud of their ongoing work to ensure the first distribution of the allocation has gone smoothly so hospitals can begin vaccinating their frontline health care workers.
I look forward to a swift and thorough explanation from the federal government regarding this change in allocation. States across the country, not just Nevada, deserve a transparent and communicative partner in this effort.”
Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration’s, Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee recommended the Moderna vaccine for emergency use. If this product is deemed safe and effective by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, this vaccine could be delivered to Nevada in the coming week, according to the Nevada Health Response.
