Some states are reporting they won’t receive as many doses of coronavirus vaccines from the federal government as they had expected in the coming weeks. Arizona's health director says she doesn't expect disruption to Arizona's vaccination efforts.
The vaccines require two doses, so the federal government had been holding second doses of vaccines in reserve to ensure people got both shots. States expected to receive more doses when this approach recently changed. But Trump administration officials now say the U.S. has already distributed its stockpiled doses.
Arizona Department of Health Services director, Dr. Cara Christ ,on Friday called the news disappointing. She said the state would have liked to increase appointment slots at vaccine sites if more doses had become available.
But she said she doesn’t expect any interruption in state’s current plans for vaccine distribution.
“We have not been basing our planning efforts on projections, so we’re really trying to stay within our means here so that everyone who has an appointment has a vaccine waiting for them," Christ said.
More than 200,000 Arizonans have received shots so far. About 24,000 of them have had both doses. The state and county health departments are continuing to add vaccination sites and appointments as more vaccines become available.
