The release of the first corona virus vaccine began Monday morning as the first dose of Pfizer drug was given to health workers and nursing home staff.
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Sandra Lindsay, RN, a leading care nurse at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, RN, was the first person to be vaccinated in New York on December 14, 2020.
A doctor at Northwell LIJ Medical Center on Long Island was vaccinated at 9:23 a.m. during a live broadcast event with New York government Andrew Cuomo. “You don’t scatter,” Cuomo said.
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Sandra Lindsay, RN, a leading care nurse at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, RN, was the first person to be vaccinated in New York on December 14, 2020.
Louisville University Hospital in Kentucky will receive its first vaccine at 9:30 a.m., and three doctors and two nurses will receive the vaccine at 10:30 p.m.
Other locations in Connecticut, New York, Iowa, Washington, D.C. and Michigan are also expected to offer vaccination levels on Monday.
Also: The breakdown of the Pfizer vaccine and why most people qualify for the injection
The release comes less than a week after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved an emergency vaccine for Americans over 16. The FDA-mandated drug company sent 2.9 million doses to 636 sites across the country.
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Exports of the Pfizer-Bioentech Covit-19 vaccine will be loaded on a UPS aircraft on December 13, 2020 at Lansing, Michigan.
Pfizer, which developed the vaccine with German company Bioendech, began shipping it to those sites directly from its Michigan warehouse on Sunday, which had already been selected by governors and local health officials.
Video: Americans to receive Pfizer vaccine from Monday: Official (AFP)
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Pfizer said it would release a second volume of 2.9 million doses after the first volume. The U.S. government wants to stockpile 500,000 units to deal with any shipping or delivery accidents.
The vaccine, which requires two doses for the entire vaccine, began distribution in the UK last week.
Also: When will teachers be vaccinated? It depends on where you live
The vaccine is the first of its kind in the country to use genetically engineered MRNA instead of viral components. Pfizer said its tests showed that the vaccine was 95% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19.
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Boxes containing the Pfizer-Bioentech Covit-19 vaccine are ready to be shipped to the Pfizer Global Supply Kalamazoo manufacturing plant in Bordage, Michigan on December 13, 2020.
The FDA is conducting an investigation with Moderna on December 17, which developed the MRNA-based vaccine, before granting emergency approval for its deployment.
Moderna said the vaccine was 94% effective in preventing the corona virus, and test patients who had been vaccinated three months after receiving the vaccine had elevated antibodies in their system.
According to the World Health Organization, there are 52 COVID-19 vaccines in human trials and 162 vaccines in premature development.
Also: 5 things to know about Govt-19 vaccines
Vaccine advances have come as the United States is in the worst period of the epidemic, according to health data. According to the Corona Virus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University, the United States leads the world with more than 16 million cases and 300,000 deaths.
The seven-day average of 211,494 new hospital cases, hospital admissions, 106,656, and 2,427 deaths, according to health data from the Govt monitoring program, was the highest on Dec. 13.
ABC News’ Ariel Mitropoulos, Sony Saulzmann and Eric Strauss contributed to the report.
The report was featured in the “Start Here” episode on Monday, December 14, 2020, in ABC News’ daily news podcast.
“Start Here” gives a live look at the best stories of the day in 20 minutes. Listen to Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, the ABC News app or any of your podcasts for free each week.
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