PEORIA, Ill. — The Peoria City/County Health Department announced Thursday there is no timetable for distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine for the Tri-County area if it is approved by the FDA.
Peoria City/County Health Department Public Health Administrator Monica Hendrickson said once approved, distribution of the COVID-19 vaccination could occur in weeks or less than a couple of days.
“From a health care standpoint as well as a public health standpoint, we’ve practiced this…the plans are there,” she said. “We’re just waiting for what that allocation number is going to be.”
The Pfizer vaccine was approved by an FDA advisory committee Thursday but still needs approval from the FDA. The Moderna vaccine will be evaluated by the FDA next week.
“Both have the same rate of efficacy of upwards 90% across populations,” said Dr. Douglas Kasper, the section head of infectious disease at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria and OSF St. Francis, when speaking about the effectiveness of the vaccines.
Patients who receive their first vaccination dose must receive the second from the same manufacturer, whether it be Pfizer or Moderna, according to Hendrickson.
In the initial phase of distribution, health care workers and high risk individuals will receive the vaccine.
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