Winter weather delays vaccine shipments

With winter storms battering much of the U.S., Lincoln County — along with thousands of other localities — did not receive COVID-19 vaccine doses last week.

“I don’t think anyone on this side of the country got vaccines this week,” said Jennifer McCully, county public health manager, on Feb. 19.

The severe weather held up roughly 6 million doses nationwide, representing three days of delayed shipping, according to Andy Slavitt, the White House senior adviser on the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking at a Feb. 19 White House press briefing, Slavitt said the delay affected all 50 states.

Storms snowed in workers with FedEx, UPS and McKesson — the country’s logistics and distribution team — slowing the packing and shipping of vaccines. Road closures hampered deliveries at different stages of the distribution process. More than 2,000 vaccine sites across the country were unable to accept doses due to power outages.

As conditions improve, however, officials are clearing the backlog. As of Feb. 19, 1.4 million doses were already in transit. Slavitt said he expected distributors to deliver all delayed doses within the next several days.

To boost the effort, both UPS and FedEx supported Saturday deliveries this weekend. As roads were cleared, shipping company employees were expected to start packing backlogged orders. Throughout the weekend, workers would put vaccines and supplies on aircraft for Monday-through-Wednesday delivery.

On Feb. 22, McCully confirmed the county was set to receive just over two weeks worth of vaccines, or 800 doses, the following day.

Slavitt asked states and vaccination sites to be prepared for the additional volume of vaccines likely to be arriving in the coming week.

“We know many Americans are waiting on their second dose, and many more, their first dose,” said Slavitt. “We’re asking vaccine administration sites to extend their hours even further and offer additional appointments, and try to reschedule the vaccinations over the coming days and weeks as significantly more supply arrives.”

Even without the delay, Lincoln County is faced with a backlog of residents eligible for the vaccine.

Local public health officials are working through a list of thousands of names long as they administer doses to those who fall under Phase 1b of Montana’s distribution plan. This group includes those over the age of 70, Native Americans, members of a minority group or people with high-risk medical conditions.

Local health officials said in late January they expected to receive around 300 doses of the Moderna vaccine a week. During a Feb. 9 county health board meeting, McCully said health department staff were making headway but could not give exact numbers.

When deciding who should receive the vaccine, health officials pull randomly from the list of names. McCully said this was the most equitable way to carry out distribution. How do you decide between a 90-year-old in good health and a 60-year-old with medical conditions, she asked when explaining the rationale to county commissioners.

As of Feb. 22, health officials have administered 2,258 vaccines in Lincoln County, according to numbers provided by the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services. A total of 444 people in the county were fully immunized, meaning they’ve received both doses of the vaccine.