Oregon should see the first shipments of a coronavirus vaccine within a few weeks. The deliveries should be enough for the first of a two-dose vaccination for just over 100,000 people, according to OPB.
It’s record speed for vaccine development and distribution. Dr. Marianne Parshley, a board member of the Oregon Medical Association, told OPB the eight-month turnaround is amazing considering the decade timeline for past vaccines.
Drug companies need the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to sign off emergency use authorization for the vaccines before they can be administered. Not waiting around, Oregon is preparing for distribution now. The Oregon Health Authority expects 35,100 doses of the Pfizer vaccine around Dec. 15, and another 40,950 from Pfizer as well as 71,900 doses from Moderna around Dec. 22.
The vaccines require two doses for the proclaimed 95% effectiveness rates, spaced out by three to four weeks, depending on which vaccine. These first doses are enough to provide vaccines to Oregon’s health care workers, according to OPB. The first shipments will be sent to hospitals, which will administer the vaccine to frontline medical and support staff.
OHA reported 1,290 new coronavirus cases and six deaths Sunday, Dec. 6, and infection numbers are expected to continue rising. That’s on the heels of the state shattering its daily record, hitting 2,176 new confirmed or presumptive cases and 30 fatalities this past Friday.
According to the newest modeling, Oregon could see a best-case scenario average of 2,000 confirmed cases per day by Christmas Eve, or if the spread accelerates, as many as 2,700 cases. The number of coronavirus hospitalizations is around two and a half times higher than a month ago.
By Cody Mann
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