APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) — Over the next couple of months, the largest public health effort in the history of the United States is set to take place as the FDA sits on the verge of approving several COVID-19 vaccines for public distribution.
Thedacare’s Dr. Mark Cockley says there’s a challenge in determining who is going to get the vaccine and when. Frontline healthcare workers are set to get it first, followed by those in skilled nursing care facilities.
“You look, then, and who is the next vulnerable group.” said Cockley. “There are people of 65 in the community, there are certain minorities that have a higher risk of mortality, certain people with heart failure. People with COPD.”
After that, and only after that, can regular, ordinary people expect their chance to get inoculated. Cockley says it could be months before that happens, depending on how quickly vaccine can be produced and distributed.
Also complicating matters is the fact that the vaccines awaiting FDA approval require a booster shot several weeks after the first inoculation.
“Different vaccines have different intervals between when you get the first shot and when you get the booster dose,” Cockley explained. “Someone who gets their vaccine from Manufacturer A, needs to get their booster from Manufacturer A.”
That adds to the logistical challenges already underway. Storage, too, is a concern. While many of the vaccines under review can be stored in normal freezers, one in particular–Pfizer’s offering–needs to be stored constantly at a temperature of -95 degrees below zero, something that may not be possible at all medical facilities.
The state of Wisconsin will likely receive around 50,000 doses of the first vaccine approved for emergency public use.
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