COVID-19 vaccine distribution update from the Washington State Department of Health

||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH |||

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) continues to make progress with our COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration efforts.

As of March 29, more than 3,325,998 doses of vaccine have been given across the state, which is 83% of the 4,006,330 doses that have been delivered to our providers and long-term care programs. Washington is currently averaging 55,894 vaccine doses given each day. This information can be found on the DOH data dashboard under the vaccines tab, which is updated three times per week.

Everyone 16 and older eligible for vaccine April 15

Everyone 16 and older who wants a COVID-19 vaccine will be eligible to receive one in Washington state starting April 15. The state’s phased eligibility approach has helped ensure those most vulnerable were the first to be vaccinated, including older adults, those in long term care facilities, critical health care workers, and more. The federal government said vaccine allocations will continue to increase. This, combined with continued hard work from our providers across the state to get shots in arms, has allowed the state to open eligibility sooner than expected to help us stop the spread of the virus.

Currently Pfizer-BioNTech is the only COVID-19 vaccine authorized for people 16 years of age and older. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are authorized for people 18 and older. Those age 16 or 17 may need consent from a parent or guardian to get the vaccine, unless they are legally emancipated.

Phase 1B tiers 3 and 4 now open

Wednesday Washington entered Phase 1B tiers 3 and 4 of the state’s COVID-19 vaccine timeline. This advancement opened eligibility to about 2 million people, including people 16 years or older with two or more co-morbidities or underlying conditions, people age 60 and older, people, staff and volunteers in certain congregate living settings, and high-risk critical workers in certain congregate settings. For a detailed list of who is eligible please refer to DOH’s vaccine allocation and prioritization guidance document.

Phase Finder, the state’s online vaccine eligibility tool, is no longer needed to verify vaccine eligibility. Eligibility and vaccine location information can be found on Vaccine Locator. Those who need help can call the COVID-19 Information Hotline at 1-800-525-0127, then press #. Language assistance is available.

Real-world study shows 90% vaccine effectiveness  

A new study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that people who received two doses of Pfizer or Moderna were 90% less likely to get infected with COVID-19 two weeks after the second dose. Following a single dose of either vaccine, risk of infection was reduced by 80% two weeks after vaccination. The three-month study looked at nearly 4,000 health care personnel, first responders, and other essential and frontline workers in six states. Because of their occupations, groups involved in the study were more likely to be exposed to the virus than the general public. The findings prove current vaccination efforts are protecting working-age adults from COVID-19 in the real-world.

Study: Pfizer extremely effective for adolescents

A new study released by Pfizer shows the vaccine is safe and 100% effective for adolescents age 12 to 15. Researchers reported high levels of virus-fighting antibodies during the clinical trial, which followed more than 2,000 kids. Pfizer plans to submit these data to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) as soon as possible to request expansion of Pfizer’s Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Depending on the outcome, this could mean vaccines may be authorized for those 12 years and older as early as this summer. Pfizer is currently the only COVID-19 vaccine authorized for teens 16 and 17 years old.

Allocation update

The first full week of April is predicted to be another record week for vaccine allocation. Our three-week forecast from the federal government shows a substantial increase in vaccine next week due to a large Johnson & Johnson allocation.

• Week of April 4: 458,340 total doses (285,320 first doses, 173,020 second doses)
  • This includes 201,240 doses of Pfizer, 148,100 doses of Moderna, and 109,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson
• Week of April 11: 412,570 total doses (217,320 first doses, 195,250 second doses)
  • This includes 223,470 doses of Pfizer, 148,100 doses of Moderna, and 41,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson
• Week of April 18: 390,340 total doses (217,320 first doses, 173,020 second doses)
  • This includes 201,240 doses of Pfizer, 148,100 doses of Moderna, and 41,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson

The three-week forecast from the federal government is subject to change as vaccine availability from the federal government may change.

The DOH website is your source for a healthy dose of information.