Counties prepared to help distribute COVID vaccine

NEW YORK STATE — As the U.S. moves forward with finalizing a vaccine that can be distributed to the public to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, likely sometime in December, New York county officials as well as local health departments are assuring the public they’re ready to help state and federal partners distribute the vaccine. A webinar was hosted by the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC) on Thursday, Nov. 19; Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro was among those present.

A recording of the webinar and PDF of the PowerPoint can be found online, at www.nysac.org/webinars.

NYSAC Executive Director Stephen Acquario remarked that COVID-19 vaccine candidates show great promise and could be approved by the FDA and other federal government jurisdictions by the end of the year. Once a vaccine is approved and manufactured, he stressed that federal, state and local governments will need to work together to get the vaccines delivered, stored and then distributed and administered in various phases. 

According to a presentation on phased allocation of COVID-19 vaccines listed on the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) website, www.cdc.gov, the proposed groups for Phase 1 vaccinations include healthcare personnel, essential workers, individuals with high-risk medical conditions and adults over the age of 65. Of course, the question is, will people be willing to take the vaccine?

Sharing a phrase he heard on the subject, Acquario said, “‘A vaccine doesn’t save lives — vaccinations do,’ meaning that we have to effectively administer these vaccines in a professional manner.”

Throughout the webinar, the public was told of how state and county officials have prepared to distribute the vaccine. There were presentations by NYSAC President and Ontario County Chairman Jack Marren, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases Director Nancy Messonnier, New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) Office of Public Health Practice Director Loretta Santilli and New York State Association of County Health Officials Executive Director Sarah Ravenall.

“A vaccine that’s sitting on the shelf has zero percent effectiveness,”  Messonnier said. “It is all about delivery of the vaccine and you know we are in unprecedented times and we are all of us being called on to do things that are frankly unimaginable. Although we have talked for years and years about pandemic planning, I don’t think any of us exactly could have predicted the position we find ourselves in now, which is smack in the middle of a pandemic.

“I can’t imagine all of you and the work that you need to do day to day to respond to the urgency of the pandemic,” she continued, “and I need to ask you at the same time to be putting in place the pieces now to get ready for this vaccine because none of us want to waste a day not administering a vaccine that could really turn the tide and save people.”

A chart was projected with the multiple components of vaccine implementation, from prioritizing populations and allocation to distribution and administration. 

The hurdles of vaccine distribution were also brought to light — including the challenges of having a limited supply of vaccines and certain populations receiving the vaccine before others.

“Make no mistake, this may be the most important thing that we as counties ever do,” Molinaro recently said about vaccinations in a recent NYSAC press release. “Counties are the backbone of public health in their communities, with decades of experience in providing large-scale vaccinations for diseases like the flu. We have the experience and the insight that is needed to reach vulnerable and underserved populations, we just need the resources to do it.”