APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) — The effects of severe weather in the southern U.S. are being felt in the Fox Valley.
Because of shipping delays, there will be no first-dose appointments at the Fox Cities COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic this week.
“Where it’s impacting us, is the Moderna [vaccine] that comes through the hub at Memphis got delayed due to the weather. So it was uncertain if we would receive it Wednesday or Thursday, so we made the decision to just sit tight,” said Appleton Health Officer Kurt Eggebrecht. “Rather than schedule people and then have to call them back and disappoint them, we just held off until next week when we had certainty that we would have vaccine in order to make appointments.”
He points out that no appointments have been scheduled yet for the use of the vaccine that is stuck in limbo. While the department had plans of making those appointments, they held back once hearing things were delayed.
“We were staffed and ready to do appointments with the knowledge of that vaccine coming, and then when it got delayed, we just had to had to pivot a little bit and go to Plan B here,” Eggebrecht told WTAQ News. “The disappointment is that we can’t vaccinate more people with the vaccine that we thought was coming…Just a recognition that the weather is something people can’t control and it’s unfortunate because we clearly want to vaccinate as many people as we can when we get vaccine.”
The clinic will still offer second doses. Those who received their first dose between Feb. 2-4 are asked to come to the clinic 21 days after their initial shot, at the same time of day. Those who provided an email address should have received an appointment reminder over the weekend.
City officials in Appleton say the delay arises from winter conditions at hubs in Louisville, Kentucky, and Memphis, Tennessee, through where some vaccine supply is routed.
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