Distribution begins for Moderna vaccine; UK imposes tough lockdowns due to possible new strain
USA TODAY is keeping track of the news surrounding COVID-19 as vaccines begin to roll out nationwide. Just this week, the U.S. marked the stark milestone of more than 17 million cases and 300,000 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic. Keep refreshing this page for the latest updates on vaccine distribution, including who is getting the shots and where, as well as other COVID-19 news from across the USA TODAY Network. Sign up for our Coronavirus Watch newsletter for updates directly to your inbox, join our Facebook group or scroll through our in-depth answers to reader questions for everything you need to know about the coronavirus.
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►Distribution of Moderna’s newly-authorized vaccine began Saturday and will arrive to states Monday, said Gen. Gustave Perna, chief operating officer of Operation Warp Speed. Meanwhile, the U.S. government is on track to deliver 20 million doses of both vaccines to states by the first week of January.
► While reports have found that some vials of the Pfizer vaccine held extra doses, that’s less likely for the Moderna vaccine, the company told a CDC committee Saturday. A “very skilled” person may be able to withdraw an extra dose out of a ten-dose vial, Moderna’s Dr. Jacqueline Miller said, but she does not “expect this to be common.”
►The United States on Friday recorded 249,709 new cases and 2,814 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins data. The number of new cases set Friday is the highest ever recorded, surpassing the toll set Wednesday by just over 2,000.
►States this week found themselves scrambling to adjust as they received word they would get between 20% and 40% less vaccine next week than they had been told as late as Dec. 9. After days of confusion, the source of the problem was finally clarified Friday night: States were given estimates based on vaccine doses produced, not those that had been OK’d.
► Minnesota State Sen. Jerry Relph, who represented the city of St. Cloud, died Thursday. He tested positive for the coronavirus on Nov. 13, but his cause of death is unknown at this time.
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► The U.K. is imposing stricter lockdowns to curb rapidly spreading infections — possibly linked to a new strain of the virus identified this week. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Saturday that nonessential shops, hairdressers and indoor leisure venues will be closed. “It is with a very heavy heart that I must tell you we cannot proceed with Christmas as planned,” Johnson said.
► A second COVID-19 vaccine was authorized for emergency use in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration on Friday. Trucks will begin moving Moderna’s vaccine this weekend, with the first of 5.9 million already manufactured Moderna shots expected to be given on Monday.
► Negotiations over the gargantuan stimulus package — which would include $600 in stimulus checks and billions in business assistance — are likely to continue this weekend, as Congress passed yet another temporary spending bill late Friday to avoid a potential shutdown.
► In Turkey, a fire broke out at an intensive care unit treating COVID-19 patients after an oxygen cylinder exploded, killing nine people.
► President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, will be getting their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine on Monday, according to Biden’s incoming press secretary, Jen Psaki. Among high-profile politicians to receive the vaccine Friday: Vice President Mike Pence, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
📈 Today’s numbers: The U.S. has more than 17.4 million coronavirus cases and is nearing 314,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: More than 75.8 million cases and 1.6 million deaths.
Here’s a closer look at today’s top stories:
Moderna vaccine distribution begins, will be delivered Monday
Packages of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine, authorized on Friday, are being packaged Saturday for delivery on Monday, Gen. Gustave Perna, chief operating officer of Operation Warp Speed, said.
“Distribution of Moderna vaccine has already begun,” Perna said at a Saturday morning news briefing.
The vaccine is being manufactured for Moderna in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, by Lonza, a Swiss-based pharmaceutical manufacturing company. From there, it will be distributed by McKesson, a medical supply company. McKesson will pack the vaccine, which comes in 10-dose vials, into special thermal shipping boxes that can maintain the necessary standard refrigerator temperature of 26 to 35 degrees Fahrenheit.
Those boxes will be packed onto UPS and FedEx trucks to begin the transportation, which will have them delivered to all 50 states by Monday.
“Trucks will begin rolling out tomorrow, from FedEx and UPS, delivering vaccines and kits to the American people across the United States,” Perna said.
He said 2.9 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine have been delivered and that the U.S. government is on track to deliver 20 million doses to states by the first week of January. That number includes both Pfizer and Moderna doses.
As COVID-19 vaccine rolls out, undocumented immigrants fear retribution
After years of isolationist and punitive immigration policies from the Trump administration, many immigrants — whose physical and fiscal health has, along with many people of color, been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic — might be unwilling to come forward and get vaccinated.
COVID-19 has been particularly merciless to Black, Hispanic and Asian Americans for reasons that include poverty, preexisting health conditions and front-line jobs. This demographic includes many immigrants, with the vast majority of those undocumented hailing from Mexico and Central America. Many of them are critical to farming and meatpacking, and their illness and death represent both a human tragedy and an economic blow.
