PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia released a new vaccine distribution plan Friday, and it's already out of date. But that's a good thing. The plan was eclipsed by the news from the White House that the vaccine supply would greatly increase.
Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley said his department finished updating its plan right before the announcement that Merck would help Johnson & Johnson double manufacturing of its single-dose vaccine, even as more Pfizer and Moderna shots become available.
"So it is already somewhat out of date," said Farley. "That's the nature of this effort is that things change very quickly and so it will need to be changed in the future."
The plan does reflect progress made so far — 234,000 people have received a first dose and 110,000 have gotten a second. Currently there are 128 vaccine sites, including hospitals, pharmacies and clinics.
Read the city's plan here.
The number also includes the FEMA clinic which opened this week in the Pennsylvania Convention Center. FEMA's community preparedness officer Charles Elison said reviews in the first two days were resoundingly positive.
"This vaccination center is a little shot in the arm, leveraging federal resources in support of the city’s vaccination initiative," he said.
The clinic, according to Ellison, is staffed by 220 Marines and sailors, and is geared up to administer 500 shots an hour, 12 hours a day, seven days a week through April.
There are no walk-up appointments. You must register through the city's website or by calling the 311 information number.
The scheduling software still allows appointment links to be shared, so the city continues to ask people not to jump the line and sign up if they haven't been invited. The only screening done on-site is for residency in the city.
For now, it's on the honor system. Farley said that while some who receive shared links may be eligible, others may not be, but the clinic isn't turning them away.
"We also have a goal of just getting the vaccine out as quickly as possible," he said. "We don't want to turn away a large number of people and have these opportunities, while the federal government is here, be missed."