Statewide Iowa — Pending FDA approval, Governor Kim Reynolds says Iowa will get its first shipment of 26-thousand doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine during the week of December 13th. That’ll be the first of multiple shipments this month which should total 172-thousand doses.
(As above) “It’s this initial quantity of vaccines that will be prioritized according to the recommendations of the CDC. In Iowa, we’ll distribute a portion of the allocation to hospitals for their workforce and to our long-term care facilities.”
The Pfizer vaccine is said to have an efficacy rate of 95-percent and it has to be given in two doses, 21 days apart. Iowa Department of Human Services director Kelly Garcia says storage is key.
(As above) “The vaccine requires ultra-cold storage at temperatures of negative-70 degrees Celsius. Once thawed, the vaccine is stable at refrigerator temperatures for five days.
Garcia says the state’s nailed down 39 locations so far for ultra-cold storage. She says by the middle of next year, there should be plenty of vaccine for everyone. The Moderna vaccine, which is also expected to be shipped to Iowa, is said to have an efficacy rate of 94.5%. It also has to be given in two doses, 28 days apart, and can be stored at a more traditional level of negative-20-degrees Celsius and it can be stable for 30 days, once thawed.
