BOISE, Idaho (AP) – An unexpected reduction in the number of coronavirus vaccine doses Idaho will receive next week will disrupt distribution plans, a state vaccination official said Friday.
Sarah Leeds, manager of the state Department of Health and Welfare’s vaccination program, said the state expected 17,550 but will only get 9,750.
“This has some pretty important implications for our vaccination program,” Leeds said during a meeting of the COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee in Idaho.
State officials have detailed plans to distribute the vaccine and will now have to recalibrate. Health officials said the reason for the reduced amount is unclear.
Leeds said the state has received the 13,950 doses they were expecting this week. About 1,000 people have been vaccinated so far. Healthcare workers who have direct contact with COVID-19 patients receive the initial doses.
The vaccine Idaho has received so far comes from Pfizer-BioNTech.
Officials during the meeting said that next week the state could receive another 28,000 doses from a different company.
The Food and Drug Administration was evaluating a feature developed by Moderna Inc. and the National Institutes of Health and was expected to give the green light soon, paving the way for its use to begin as early as Monday.
The Moderna vaccine is easier to handle, as it does not need to be stored at freezing temperatures such as the Pfizer-BioNTech shot. Both require two doses for complete protection.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare said the virus has infected more than 126,000 residents and killed 1,259.
The Vaccine Advisory Committee has established a list of priorities for groups of people to get the vaccine. On Friday, the committee made some slight changes in the priority of workers receiving the vaccine.
In general, health workers who come into direct contact with COVID-19 patients are followed on the list by outpatient staff essential to maintain hospital capacity. Others on the list include long-term care center staff, home care providers, and emergency medical assistants.
Residents in long-term care centers are also in the initial category of those receiving the shots. Older adults are much more susceptible to serious illness or death from the virus.
The next category that meets the requirements to get the vaccine is the essential workers. This category is developed with firefighters and police, followed by school teachers and caretakers.
Prison workers, food processing industry workers, and grocery and convenience store workers are also on this list.