Hope is on the horizon for people across Connecticut as state residents near access to a vaccine that could stem the spread of COVID-19. But while the vaccine is thought to be a key to not only the health pandemic and improving the economy, it will be months before there is widespread availability.
A vaccine produced by Pfizer Inc. and German partner BioNTech, developed in Groton, was approved through an emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration Friday night. The approval makes the vaccine the first allowed to be widely distributed across the U.S. after it had already been put into use in the UK and Canada.
Once approved, distribution of millions of doses could begin, sending at least a portion of the shots to Connecticut.
Here’s what people in Connecticut may want to know about the vaccine:
How many vaccines are coming to Connecticut?
State officials expect 31,200 doses of the Pfizer vaccine to arrive in the first week. With each person required to receive two vaccinations, however, that figure would cover 15,600 people or just the first dose for 31,200.
It is expected that a vaccine developed by Moderna would follow in the approvals process with the hopes of distribution beginning a week, or so, after the Pfizer vaccine.
Gov. Ned Lamont’s office has said it expects more doses to continue arriving in the following weeks for at least 225,775 people to receive both their first and second doses by the end of January.
How effective are the vaccines?
The Pfizer vaccine was initially proven 90% effective through clinical trials, with the efficacy raised to 95% after being tested on 170 COVID-19 positive patients.
The Moderna vaccine was tested on 196 people, proving 94.1% effective. Both vaccines require two doses.
Several other vaccines remain in the development phase, including one from AstraZeneca. That vaccine has proven less effective and is further away from approval. Johnson and Johnson is also developing its own vaccine that would require one dose.
How are the vaccines getting here?
Pfizer has the vaccine vials in Kalamazoo, Mich. and Pleasant Prairie, Wis. They’ll be shipped to UPS and Fed Ex facilities to providers, including hospitals, pharmacies, etc. They key to the Pfizer vaccine is that it needs to be stored at minus-112 degrees to ensure effectiveness, so it will be stored in special thermal boxes along as it travels.
The Moderna vaccine, which doesn’t require the same level of ultra-cold temperatures, still requires special freezers. The vaccine will ship to McKesson Corp. facilities around the country, eventually shipped by UPS and Fed Ex to providers.
Who gets them first?
The first phase of recipients includes those working in healthcare, those living in long-term care facilities and medical first responders. That group alone could be at least 232,000 people.
Hospitals will vaccinate their own workers, while CVS and Walgreens will vaccinate those living in long-term care facilities.
Major hospitals around the state expect to begin vaccinating employees within the first few days the shots are available in Connecticut. Hartford HealthCare expects to receive about 1,950 doses in the first shipment, while St. Francis Hospital in Hartford expects about 2,000.
When can I get them?
Police officers and firefighters will be among the first groups to follow, once the aforementioned group is vaccinated. Those deemed in “critical workforces” will also be in the next stage, along with adults over the age of 65, people who are deemed high risk and under 65 and people in congregate settings.
It has not yet been determined exactly how all of those people will be vaccinated, but it is likely pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens will play a key role. Smaller, independent pharmacies and doctors’ offices will likely follow.
Those who don’t fall into the first full phase will have to wait until phase two. The process is expected to begin in summer 2021.
State officials are hoping by early fall 2021 that anyone who wants to be vaccinated will have access and have been able to receive the proper dosage.
What about my children?
Not all children are going to be receiving the COVID-19 vaccine right away. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were largely tested on adults, with those as young as 12 only recently being brought into the equation because they have been less likely to suffer serious symptoms from COVID-19.
With adults’ immune systems varying from that of childrens’, it’s unlikely a child-specific vaccine will be ready until summer, perhaps longer.
Do I need to get the vaccine once? Every year?
It may sound odd, but not even those who developed the Pfizer vaccine are sure.
How much will they cost?
It could depend where you receive the vaccine. The doses “purchased with U.S. taxpayer dollars will be given to the American people at no cost,” according to the CDC. But those who provide the vaccines are able to charge “administration fees” for giving the vaccine. That fee can be paid for through an insurance company. Those without insurance can seek reimbursement.
What if I don’t want to get the vaccine?
You won’t be alone. A recent survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows nearly 25 percent of U.S. adults aren’t sure if they will get the vaccination and another quarter said they won’t.
Experts estimate at least 70 percent of the U.S. population needs to be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity.
But getting the shot is currently not required by the U.S. government and no state has put in a requirement, either. That could still change and even individual cities could require the vaccine.
It could also be required by individual workplaces to take the vaccine or risk employment.
Previous reporting from Emilie Munson, Alex Soule and the Associated Press was used in this report.
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