In a single week, about 6,500 doses of COVID-19 vaccine were administered to residents of Pima County through Wednesday.
Tucson Medical Center and Banner – University Medicine on Dec. 17 began vaccinations for health care workers in priority group 1A, which includes those who have the highest-risk exposure to COVID-19.
Pima County has received a total of 28,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine – 11,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 17,000 doses of the Moderna product. The Moderna allocation arrived on Dec. 22 and was delivered, in part, to several pre-enrolled community hospitals and clinics. That expanded the County’s network of vaccinators beyond TMC and Banner, which are uniquely equipped to handle the Pfizer vaccine that must be stored at a much colder temperature.
The Moderna vaccine can be stored in standard laboratory freezers.
TMC and Banner each received slightly more than 6,000 Moderna doses in this week’s delivery, in addition to their previous Pfizer allotment.
With the addition of the Modera vaccine to the local supply, the rate of vaccination will rise. In addition, CVS and Walgreens are receiving the Moderna vaccination directly from the federal government and are expected to provide on-site vaccinations to residents and staff at long-term care facilities starting Dec. 28.
There are about 67,000 front-line health care workers eligible in the Phase 1A group.
For more information on the priority groups, FAQs about the COVID-19 vaccines and regular updates, go to
www.pima.gov/covid19vaccine
Pima County regularly will update the number of vaccines administered and the arrivals of shipments of vaccine.