MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — Mecklenburg County Public Health now has hundreds of doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. The shipment arrived Tuesday, and the health department immediately got to work putting the doses to use.
"We knew the vaccine would be arriving sometime this week, but we didn't receive notification of shipment, so we didn't know exactly when," said Dr. Meg Sullivan, Mecklenburg Public Health's Medical Director. "So surprise -- it showed up at our county health department -- obviously, a pleasant surprise. It's hard not to be incredibly excited."
This first vaccine shipment contained Pfizer doses, and county health officials report the first in line to receive the doses will be Mecklenburg EMS paramedics, and Mecklenburg County Public Health vaccine staff.
"Our EMTs and paramedics have been on the frontlines from the beginning, caring for COVID patients, transporting them to the hospital," said Dr. Sullivan. "Also, we vaccinated a number of public health staff who are going to be the ones administering the vaccine to high-risk healthcare workers."
First doses will also go to non-hospital partners involved in the county testing efforts and care of COVID patients. Some of the vaccines will help long-term care facilities that are not enrolled in the federal vaccination program.
The new shipment comes as hospitals across the Carolinas receive their first batches of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.
Atrium was among 11 health care providers who received the first shipments of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine earlier this month, and was also among the first in the region to receive the first doses of the Moderna vaccine.
While the vaccine's arrival is an exciting development, it is also coming at a crucial time. County and statewide COVID-19 metrics are at their highest levels of the pandemic, and with the potential of many Christmas gatherings coming, health officials are concerned the numbers could spike higher.
"It is such a positive step, but it's also just a stark reminder of how far we have to go," said Dr. Sullivan.