Three COVID-19 vaccines are now showing promising results, California Govin Newsom told a news conference on Monday that the state is preparing for delivery and distribution, but widespread public availability is still months away.
As Newsom said earlier, he noted that public health workers will be the first in line to get vaccinated, and that could happen before the end of the year.
“Mass vaccination is unlikely to happen soon,” Newsom said. “March, April, June, July, here we start the scale.”
The Food and Drug Administration is likely to approve one or more vaccinations in early December, and Newsom says the state is ready to move quickly with the wheels already moving.
California has initiated a community advisory committee of community groups, school leaders, and nonprofits to provide advice on distribution and distribution. 1a. A draft allocation plan, targeting 2.4 million health workers across the state, is due by December 1st.
The committee will then look at the distribution of vaccines to those in the church, the medically vulnerable, first aiders and those involved in the safety infrastructure.
Earlier this month, pharmaceutical manufacturers Pfizer and Moderna reported preliminary results from late-stage studies showing that their COVID-19 vaccines were almost 95% effective. AstraZeneca said on Monday that late-stage experiments have shown that the vaccine is very effective and, unlike the others, does not need to be stored at freezing temperatures, making it potentially cheaper and easier to distribute.
According to Newsom, Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are likely to be marketed in “very limited quantities” for the first time.
“The first round of vaccinations will be extremely limited,” he said. – Let’s start with the deficit.
The State Scientific Safety Review Working Group has already reviewed Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in both Lists I and II. Phase III test data and will be able to review the III. Phase data when the FDA and CDC receive information to expedite review and avoid delays. .
The country’s most populous state, California, has carried out mass vaccinations in the past, administering tens of millions of routine vaccines each year, and draws on this experience. Last season, 19 million doses of influenza vaccine were given in three to four months. According to the governor, local health departments doubled their usual doses during the H1N1 epidemic.
“We’re not starting from scratch … we’re building this rich experience,” Newsom said. “We are building on the existing state and local infrastructure, as well as the history of partnerships that have been organized at all levels.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
