Dec. 7, 2020 4:35p; Updated at 5:40p with changes to Pleasant Prairie reference
(WPR/WGTD)---Plans are underway in Wisconsin for distributing the coronavirus vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna. The two COVID-19 vaccines will be reviewed Thursday for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration.
Each of the state’s seven healthcare emergency readiness coalition (HERC) regions will receive an allotment from 49,725 doses of a vaccine produced by Pfizer. Priority will be given to health care workers, but when that may happen will be determined by a federal committee’s recommendations on dosage and who should not receive the vaccine because of possible complications.
"I think it’s important to make sure it's done in a well-planned, careful manner and that safety is not compromised at the expense of speed," said Stephanie Schauer, immunization program manager for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services.
The state has more than 450,000 healthcare workers. Even if both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines get approval for emergency use from the federal government, it won’t be enough to vaccinate everyone at once.
According to a state vaccination plan, the priority for who should get the COVID-19 vaccine will be health care workers, then long-term care facilities, essential workers and those over 65 years old.
A facility in Pleasant Prairie is expected to serve as one of three national hubs for Pfizer vaccine distribution, although what's described as a glitch, unless corrected, would prevent the facility from shipping vaccine to all states.
Legislation to overcome the hurdle has been developed by the two legislators that represent the village: State Sen. Van Wanggaard and State Rep. Samantha Kerkman.
Wanggaard says he hopes the measure will win bi-partisan support early next year. Pfizer won't need the legislation until the first quarter, he said.
The exact location of the Pleasant Prairie facility hasn't been revealed. Nor is it known why Pfizer picked Pleasant Prairie, although the greater Kenosha area is a prime spot for various distribution and fulfillment centers.
It'll be several months until the vaccines are widely available, and health officials across the country continue to urge people to maintain safety measures such as physically distancing, wearing face coverings when you have to go out, and staying home and sticking to people in your household as much as possible.
Hospitalizations in Wisconsin peaked Nov. 16 with 2,277 patients. Since then, hospitalizations have declined, for both regular and ICU beds. At the peak, 456 people were in intensive care with COVID-19. That dropped to 325 the first week of December, when 14 percent of the state’s ICU beds were available.
A coalition including hospitals called "Stop the COVID Spread!" is asking people not to let their guard down. In their fifth public service announcement, the group says Wisconsin continues to face "unrelenting COVID-19 case counts with hospitals throughout the state operating near or at full capacity."
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