With the announcement of the Food and Drug Administration vaccine advisory panel recommending the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine needs granted an emergency use authorization, Michigan is developing a distribution plan once the vaccine is authorized.
Initially, five Michigan hospitals would be the first to get the vaccine, according to the Michigan Health and Hospital Association.
The hospitals are Beaumont Hospital in Troy, Ascension Macomb-Oakland in Warren, University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor, Spectrum Health Butterworth in Grand Rapids and MidMichigan Medical Center in Midland.
“Once they are approved, we expect to receive a limited allocation of these vaccines and expect to receive shipments every week,” said Dr. Joneigh Khladun, Michigan chief medical executive.
There are about 300 sites across Michigan that have signed up to receive the vaccine, which over the next two weeks, should be about 85,000 doses from Pfizer and 173,000 from Moderna.
“We have already reached out to hospitals and others who believe they may need assistance with actually having people administer the vaccine,” Khaldun said. “The National Guard, at least initially, will be having teams that are helping some of the hospitals that reach out for support in administering the vaccine.”
Once hospitals vaccinate their workforce, the next priority group will be nursing home residents and staff.
US panel endorses widespread use of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine
A U.S. government advisory panel has endorsed Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine, in a major step toward an epic vaccination campaign that could finally conquer the outbreak.
The Food and Drug Administration is expected to follow the recommendation issued Thursday by its expert advisers. The advisory group, in a 17-4 vote with one abstention, concluded that the shot appears safe and effective against the coronavirus in people 16 and older.
A final FDA decision is expected within days. Millions of shots would then ship to begin vaccinating health care workers and nursing home residents. Widespread access to the general public is not expected until the spring.