ANN ARBOR, Mich. – On Monday afternoon, the first doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine arrived at facilities in Metro Detroit.
However, it does take some time to thaw the vaccine from Pfizer and BioNtech.
As the vaccination program gets started, the State of Michigan is reporting new cases of the coronavirus.
The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan has risen to 437,985 as of Monday, including 10,752 deaths, state officials reported.
Monday’s update includes 7,205 new cases and 90 additional deaths over the past two days.
Frontline health care workers at two Michigan hospitals Monday were the first people in the state to receive the COVID-19 vaccine authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The first COVID-19 vaccine, produced by Michigan-based Pfizer, and Monday’s initial vaccinations mark a historic milestone in the world’s unprecedented cooperative mission to control and end the COVID-19 pandemic. The vaccinations at Michigan Medicine and Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital begin the journey toward the eventual safe full reopening of Michigan’s economy, schools and communities. Additional Michigan hospitals are expected to begin vaccinating health care staff later this week.
A member of Operation Warp Speed spoke with Local 4 News about the enormous task of getting the vaccine to millions of Americans.
The vaccine arrived at Michigan Medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor just around 9 a.m. Monday.
Marion Whicker, a warren resident and member of Operation Warp Speed who has been working on logistics for months made the trip from Washington, D.C. to Portage, Michigan to oversee the first shipments.
She then drove to Ann Arbor to get a sense of how the planning and execution was going.
Michigan Medicine is working to make sure the process is right and watching for any adverse reactions or side affects. Only five people will be vaccinated Monday and 40 Tuesday.
On Monday in the City of New York, the first non-trial, emergency authorized dose went into the arm of an ICS nurse named Sandra.
The nurse said it did not feel different from getting any other vaccine. To date, the US death toll from the coronavirus has exceeded 300,000.