First shipment of COVID vaccine could arrive in Riverside County by Dec. 18
The first shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine could arrive in Riverside County as soon as Friday, December 18, county officials announced.
County officials said on Friday that the vaccine could arrive as soon as Tuesday, Dec. 15, which was based on the dates of possible delivery. The Department of Public Health notified the county that the first shipment would indeed arrive by December 18.
The vaccine is expected to arrive at several pre-selected hospitals and at Riverside University Health System (RUHS) - Public Heath facilities, where they will be housed until transported to other medical locations.
"With so much grim news lately with the pandemic, it is great that we can give the public something so positive that we believe can turn this around," said Kim Saruwatari, director of Public Health. "This is a turning point in the pandemic and we are looking forward to a time in the not-to-distant future when we can vaccinate tens of thousands of our neighbors against this virus."
The vaccine needs to be stored in freezing temperatures. The county will be transporting freezers to hospitals for storage.
COVID-19 vaccine freezer from RUHS Public Health on Vimeo.
According to the county, there will be between 14,000 and 15,000 doses available which will be used to vaccinate first-line health care workers at acute cate hospitals with "direct patient contact who have potential for direct or indirect exposure."
“Receiving the first doses of vaccine for our front-line healthcare workers is a day we’ve been looking forward to,” said Vice Chair Karen Spiegel, Second District Supervisor. “As we receive more vaccine in the coming weeks and months, we’ll be able to offer vaccinations to more of our workforce and start to see big movement in recovering from this terrible pandemic.”
The Food and Drug Administration authorized the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine on Friday evening. The first shipment arrived in California Sunday night.
The first batch of COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in Los Angeles at LAX. This is a major milestone for science, our country and our community. Thank you to all those who made this delivery possible, and are part of the incredible effort to distribute vaccines around the world. pic.twitter.com/KUnjSFrTyS
— LAX Airport (@flyLAXairport) December 14, 2020
Vaccinations began in the state on Monday.
History made.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 14, 2020
Helen Cordova, a nurse in an intensive care unit in LA, became one of the first Californians to get vaccinated today. pic.twitter.com/Ey4bR44aBl
Riverside County officials, working with state and federal officials, developed a distribution plan to get the doses to thousands of health care workers under the phased system of allocation.
"The vaccine is a lifesaving breakthrough in the battle against this global pandemic," said Board Chair V. Manuel Perez, Fourth District Supervisor. "It comes at an urgent time, especially for our health care workers who face a worsening situation at hospitals throughout Riverside County and our nation. It is ever more critical that we follow public health requirements, wear a mask, maintain physical distancing and avoid unsafe crowds so we can all help each other."
News Channel 3's Dani Romero will have more on the county's rollout plan, speaking with officials about how these doses of vaccines will be administered to health care workers once they arrive.
Watch the full story tonight at 5 & 6 p.m.
