FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
December 29, 2020
COLUMBIA, SC – The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) today announced the following COVID-19 updates on the COVID-19 vaccine.
Allocation phase
- South Carolina is in phase 1a of the vaccine distribution.
- The federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) released its recommendations on December 20 to individuals in phase 1b. The Vaccine Advisory Committee (VAC) of South Carolina is using this federal guidance to complete the phase 1b guidelines in South Carolina, which will be provided as soon as they are finalized, which could be early next week. ACIP also recommended the development of a phase 1c category, which the VAC will begin to develop in line with this federal guidance.
Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine
- On December 29, South Carolina received a total of 112,125 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine:
- Week of 12/14: 42,900 doses received
- Week of 12/21: 30,225 doses received
- Week of 12/28: 39,000 doses received
- A total of 31,511 doses of the vaccine were administered to phase 1a subjects, with injections continuing to be administered each day.
- South Carolina will continue to receive weekly doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The number of doses the state receives each week is expected to vary and will not be known with certainty until vaccine shipments are received from the federal government.
- Phase 1a individuals who received their Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will need a second injection 21 days later. The second injection will come from a future vaccine distribution that is being specifically maintained by the federal government as the second dose for these individuals, to ensure that they receive the two necessary doses.
Modern Vaccine
- On December 28, South Carolina received 84,500 doses of the Modern vaccine that are allocated to the CDC’s Long-Term Care Program. This federal program works with CVS and Walgreens pharmacies to provide vaccines for states’ long-term care facilities. DHEC has a limited role in this federal program, in addition to dedicating doses of the South Carolina vaccine to the program.
- An update on vaccine doses administered to South Carolina long-term care facilities through this federal program will be available soon.
DHEC will continue to provide regular updates on the COVID-19 vaccine in South Carolina. A new data element is being developed to provide reports of vaccine-specific data on the COVID-19 page, and is expected to be available on the website at early January. For current vaccine information, visit scdhec.gov/vaxfacts.
Today’s cases and deaths (scdhec.gov/COVID19)
Cumulative totals (scdhec.gov/COVID19)
- Confirmed and probable cases: 277,563 / 23,039
- Confirmed and probable deaths: 4,804 / 394
- Tests performed for Southern Carolinians: 3,606,268
Testing opportunities (scdhec.gov/COVID19testing)
- Test opportunities available across the state: 313
Positive percentage (scdhec.gov/COVID19dashboard)
- 8,139 individual test results reported across the state yesterday (not including antibody tests)
- 27.1% positive percent
Installation reports
The information above, as well as comprehensive reports on county-level information, demographics and more, are available at scdhec.gov/COVID19. The site is updated between 1 pm and 3 pm on weekdays and 11 am to 1 pm on weekends. Visit scdhec.gov/COVID19vaccine for the latest vaccine information.
Additional information and resources
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