More megasites of COVID-19 vaccines are opening nationwide, including at Yankee Stadium

Month COVID-19 Vaccination megasites opened this week across the country, including a Missouri casino and New York’s Yankee Stadium, where a long line was formed that opened Friday to local residents.

Legendary MLB player Mariano Rivera was there, encouraging people to get their shots. “Now is the time to support you and let you know it’s okay to get vaccinated,” Rivera said.

There are more places along the way. In California, Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara County will become the state’s largest vaccination site when it opens early next week, according to the county and the San Francisco 49ers. The goal is to be able to vaccinate up to 15,000 people a day.

The news came after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said so President Joe Biden in a letter dated Thursday that the league makes all of its 32 stadiums available as vaccination sites for the general public, Michael George reported on “CBS This Morning: Saturday.”

All those real estate may be needed. Another vaccine against COVID could be on its way to the United States. Johnson & Johnson filed an emergency authorization with the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday for its one-dose vaccine. Once given the green light, Johnson & Johnson he said he expects to supply 100 million doses to the country in June.

The vaccine is 85% effective against the most severe symptoms of the virus and 66% overall to prevent moderate to severe disease. It would be the third vaccine available on the market, joining the stressed supplies of Pfizer and Moderna

“Clearly, we don’t have enough Modern RNA and Pfizer vaccines right now to deal with the pandemic in the U.S., let alone in the world,” said former FDA chief scientist Dr. Jesse Goodman.

More than 26 million cases of COVID-19 have now been reported in the United States and nearly 460,000 people have died from the virus. More than 36 million vaccines have currently been administered on the market nationwide and 7.5 million people are fully vaccinated.

Rapidly spreading coronavirus variants could threaten the progress made. A strain first identified in South Africa it has now been found in Virginia, one of three states reporting cases. Another strain, first detected in the UK, has been found across the country and recently in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Health officials said the person with the first documented case of the variant in Kalamazoo County had no history of travel.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to announce updated guidelines this week for returning children to school. CDC Director, Dra. Rochelle Walensky he said this week “There is growing evidence to suggest that schools can reopen safely and that safe reopening does not suggest that teachers need to be vaccinated.”