For weeks, state officials have blamed much of the slow release of the COVID-19 vaccine in Pennsylvania, providers unnecessarily holding back doses to make sure people get their second dose when needed.
In fact, they urged providers not to withhold doses, assuring them that the second of the two required doses would be available when needed.
Also on Wednesday, acting health secretary Alison Beam announced that suppliers since early January are distributing second doses of Moderna vaccine as first doses, characterizing it as a significant mistake. More than 100,000 people can be affected, said Beam.
Because of the error, Beam said that up to 60,000 people might have to reschedule appointments, and up to 55,000 others might be late to receive their initial doses.
Although he did not fully reconcile the apparent conflict in the orientation, Beam set out the details while saying that the state can adjust so that everyone receives their second dose within an acceptable time frame. There is no medical difference between the first and second doses, so the situation should not pose any immediate health hazard, she noted.
Beam declined to blame, although he suggested that the state health department is at least partially responsible.
“What we are working on is ensuring that our department, our communication, our transparency and our share in the business are improved,” said Beam.
Beam said the problem involved only the Modern vaccine, one of two distributed so far, the other being the Pfizer vaccine.
She said the error started in early January, with the consequences “increasing every week”.
The state recently discovered the problem, she said, when the weekly order for second doses of Moderna equaled all the supplies received so far.
Beam also said that the error can be corrected with little or no damage. This can be achieved in large part by rescheduling appointments for the second dose of Moderna. Although people generally receive their second dose in about 28 days, Beam said that some could wait up to 42 days for the second dose, which would still be under federal guidelines.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that second doses of Moderna are fully effective if administered within 42 days after the first injection; there is limited research on its effectiveness beyond 42 days, the CDC said last week.
Beam said his department found unused stocks across the state to help fill the void. She also expressed confidence that the federal government will deliver the doses on time. She said she hopes the two sources will allow 30,000 to 60,000 affected people to receive their second dose within the appropriate timeframe.
She also promised that the health department, in conjunction with vaccine providers, will ensure that people are contacted and their appointments rescheduled. She said the appointments would have to be carried over to the week following “or at most two weeks” from the original appointment.
In a tense briefing with reporters, Bean did not detail how the situation fits with the fact that his department for weeks has told providers not to withhold second doses and ensuring that a second dose, from a separate supply, will be available when needed.
However, she said the situation was discussed with the new legislative task force formed to improve the vaccine’s launch in Pennsylvania and agrees with the answer she detailed. She said the task force, recently formed last week, met three times to improve communication and resolve problems with the vaccine’s launch.
“We are all focusing on the way forward and the solution that takes Pennsylvania directionally forward as well,” said Beam.
Beams further called the situation “a stark reminder that, at the moment, there is not enough vaccine for everyone who is eligible to receive it”.
So far, Pennsylvania has given doses of vaccines to about 1.7 million people, including about half a million who have received the two doses needed to be fully protected.
This week you will receive 183,575 first doses, along with 143,275 second doses. Vaccine supply has grown, albeit slowly, with this week’s allocation having increased by about 8,000 doses since last week, a state official said on Wednesday.
At another news conference on Wednesday afternoon, Governor Tom Wolf said his government will work to ensure that those who need the second dose receive it. He also said that there is no doubt that there will be other ways to improve vaccine implantation in the future.
“We are going to look for ways and find ways to make the system work even better,” said Wolf.