Coronavirus vaccinations start for Maricopa County health care workers
Dec 17, 2020, 4:25 AM
PHOENIX — Maricopa County is set to begin vaccinations against the coronavirus on Thursday, and health care workers will be first in line.
“Eligible health care workers will begin receiving COVID-19 vaccines,” Marcy Flanagan, executive director of the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, told reporters Wednesday.
“These are by appointment-only and for those who have the most exposure and risk.”
Two point of dispensing sites, also known as PODs, will open Thursday. That’s where health care workers will be able to get the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Three more sites will open next week.
The county hopes to vaccinate 123,000 healthcare workers in the first phase. That includes those who treat COVID-19 patients, emergency medical service providers and staff who keep facilities and bedding clean.
For now, the county has to prioritize which health care workers get the vaccine first since it only had 43,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine as of Wednesday. Gov. Doug Ducey had projected Maricopa County would receive 47,000 doses in the first week of vaccine distribution.
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Maricopa County has set up a pre-screening process to begin verifying eligibility. More than 27,000 health care workers have completed the pre-screening.
Residents of long-term care facilities are also among the first group of people who will qualify for a vaccine. Other high-risk populations and essential workers are next in line.
Flanagan hopes most Arizonans will be eligible by spring or summer.
“Eventually, we hope people will be able to get a COVID-19 vaccine much like they would the flu vaccine, at a doctor’s office or pharmacy,” she said.
For now, she encourages Arizonans to keep following COVID-19 safety precautions.
“We know our health care partners are seeing some of the highest numbers we’ve seen since the beginning of the pandemic,” she said. “Our daily case count has increased significantly, so now is the time to stay vigilant.”
