From the Washington State Department of Health

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health anticipates receiving tens of thousands more doses of COVID-19 vaccine later this week, as vaccinations continue for frontline health workers and long-term care residents and staff across the state.

These groups are the first and only people eligible to receive the vaccine at this time. As of midday today, at least 410 doses of vaccine have been administered to these groups in Washington.

The department estimates it will take until around mid- to late January to finish vaccinating these groups and begin offering the vaccine to the next eligible groups.

31,200 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine have already arrived in Washington, and we’ll be getting 29,250 additional doses later this week. These doses will be delivered to a total of 39 sites covering 29 counties. Additionally, 1950 total doses will go to three tribes or Urban Indian Health Programs this week. Please see the table below for a breakdown of where this week’s 62,400 total doses will be delivered.

We expect to receive another 74,100 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine next week and 85,800 the week of Dec. 29.

Pfizer doses to be delivered in Washington, week of Dec. 14

Provider enrollment  

As of Dec. 16, we had 280 clinics, pharmacies and hospitals fully enrolled in the COVID-19 vaccine distribution program. These locations currently cover 37 out of our 39 counties in Washington. We are also processing many additional enrollment applications.

We are grateful to all of the facilities that have expressed interest in administering vaccine to the people of Washington.

Moderna vaccine 

Moderna submitted an Emergency Use Authorization on Nov. 30. The FDA is scheduled to review this EUA tomorrow (Dec. 17). If the FDA approves the EUA, the vaccine will be reviewed by the Scientific Safety Review Workgroup, as part of the Western States Pact. If approved by the workgroup, we expect to get about 183,800 doses of Moderna vaccine by the end of December—about 128,000 the week of Dec. 22 and 55,800 the week of Dec. 29.

Vaccine reminders

There are several ways for people being vaccinated to keep track of when to go in for a second dose, since the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is a two-dose series. The Pfizer-BioNTech doses, given 21 days apart, will offer the maximum protection against COVID-19.

Your provider will give you a record card when you get the first dose of your COVID-19 vaccine. These cards are available in English and Spanish and will tell you what kind of vaccine you got, the date you got it, and when to return for your second dose. Please keep your card in a place where you will see it so that you remember to get your second dose.

When you get each dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, your vaccine provider will also enter the information in the Immunization Information System (IIS). The IIS is a lifetime registry that keeps track of immunization records for people of all ages. The system is a secure, web-based tool used by health care providers and schools. The IIS connects people who receive, administer, record, and order vaccines in Washington.

You can view or print your lifetime immunization records through wa.MyIR.net.

Post-vaccination reminders

It’s very important to return to your clinic or provider to get your second dose of the vaccine. These tools can help you remember to get your second dose:

v-safe app

v-safe is a smartphone-based tool that uses texts and web surveys to give you personalized health check-ins after you get the COVID-19 vaccine. The app will also remind you when to get your second vaccine dose.

Your vaccine provider may have their own system to remind you about getting your second dose including calls, texts, Electronic Health Record (EHR) notifications and mailings.

Prevention

While vaccines are a crucial tool in beating the virus, they can’t be used alone at this time. Even as we begin to vaccinate people in our state, it will still be important to maintain the infection control measures that have become part of our daily lives. We will all need to keep wearing masks and taking precautions for many more months. For now, we should all continue limiting our social interactions with people who don’t live with us and staying at home as much as possible.

Also, it’s not too late to get your flu vaccine. No-cost flu vaccine is available for people of all ages in Washington. Visit knockoutflu.org for locations and more info.