After the United States Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved a new COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, the first shipments will arrive at AdventHealth Orlando on Tuesday, according to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Other hospitals in Florida received the first doses on Monday.
“(Monday) was really a historic day,” DeSantis said.
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“(Tuesday), Jackson Memorial in Miami will receive its shipment, as well as AdventHealth in Orlando,” DeSantis said. “What we’ll have by (Monday) morning is almost 100,000 doses for these five hospital systems.”
AdventHealth Orlando said it will begin inoculating its frontline staff on Wednesday.
DeSantis said about 60,000 doses will go to CVS and Walgreens stores.
“There’s a light at the end of the tunnel,” said DeSantis, referring to the potential end of the coronavirus pandemic.
Hospital leaders said plans are in place to give out the vaccine this week to frontline workers and doctors who are most at risk.
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar said he expects about 20 million doses to go out across the U.S. this month.
“And then we think we’ll be up to 50 million total vaccinations of people by the end of January and a 100 million shots in arms by the end of February,” Azar said.
Seminole County leaders told News 6 they’re prepping now to possibly receive about 8,000 to 10,000 doses during a second shipment.
“Right now, the projection is that the second doses would come in somewhere around the 22nd or the 23rd,” said Alan Harris, Seminole County Emergency Manager. “It may be a Christmas Eve, Christmas present where we’re going in and providing vaccinations to individuals in long-term care facilities.”
A CDC committee also voted to recommend the vaccine for those who are 16 and older.
However, AdventHealth leaders told us there should be more data before children receive it.
DeSantis said Monday that he believes most Florida residents could be vaccinated by February.