NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — As the FDA weighs approval of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, there's hope and questions surrounding the immunization.
Once a vaccine is approved, officials face the monumental task of delivering it across the country.
The Senate Commerce Transportation Subcommittee held a hearing Thursday on the logistics of transporting the vaccine and preparations to make sure it goes smoothly.
Pennsylvania Secretary of Health, Dr. Rachel Levine, told the subcommittee the $300 million that have been allocated to distribute the vaccines, which works out to $1 a person, isn't enough.
"We are facing challenges in finding sufficient funding to execute a timely, comprehensive and equitable vaccine campaign over the long haul," Levine said.
Operation Warp Speed officials said they are planning to distribute 20 million vaccine doses in December, 60 million doses in January and 100 million doses in February.
Related
CBS News medical contributor Dr. Jon Lapook tells WCBS 880's Marla Diamond that receiving and administering the vaccine is a big challenge.
The vaccine will be shipped in dry ice in what looks like a pizza box.
"They are in vials of five and once they are taken out of the deep freezers, there's a certain number of hours they've got to be given in, so you don't want to waste doses, so you really have to think of the logistics," Lapook said.
Dr. Susan Mashini, who is charge of the Mount Sinai Health System's distribution plan, said they are treating the vaccine like the liquid gold that it is.
She said they received some of the supplies that go along with the vaccine on Thursday morning.
"I do have to say one good piece of news is that we did receive some of the supplies that go along with the vaccine this morning via UPS from Pfizer, so we're pretty excited that the process of the deliveries are coming," she said.
Mashini said the plan is to start vaccinating high-risk employees with state approval as soon as Monday. "Everybody from physicians, to nurses, respiratory therapists, as well as environmental services, food service workers, transportation people, security, just a gamut of folks that might be exposed to the COVID virus inadvertently," she said.
Another hurdle will be convincing people the vaccine is safe.
Lapook said many are put off by the words "Operation Warp Speed," the White House's nickname for the vaccine distribution plan.
"A lot of people think when they hear 'Operation Warp Speed' that the operation is going so fast that you're skipping over the normal safety steps and that is not true," Lapook said. "This is something based on solid science that people can have confidence. What did go more quickly was the testing of it and that was because they cut red tape. Instead of waiting between Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3 they just kept going."
The first doses of the vaccine could be in New York by the weekend.
Vaccination is not mandatory but that could change if the state health department believes it's necessary.
LISTEN NOW on the RADIO.COM App
Follow RADIO.COM
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram