Washington Gov. Inslee: With OK from Western States group, vaccine could start arriving Monday
A group of experts appointed by the governors of four western states, including Washington, has unanimously concluded that the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer/BioNTech is “safe and efficacious.”
The regional group’s OK follows approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Doses of the vaccine could start to arrive from the federal government Monday, according to Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, and could begin to be administered as early as Tuesday.
The governor struck a hopeful note while delivering the news at a press conference Sunday morning.
“We now are joining the powers and blessings of science with our own diligence, our own responsibility and our own commitment to take care of ourselves and our loved ones that we have been showing in the state of Washington,” Inslee said.
The vaccine “cannot come soon enough,” Inslee said, as the state closes in on 200,000 residents known to have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and approaches 3,000 who’ve died from the disease.
Washington is slated to receive an estimated 62,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine in an initial allocation and a total of 222,000 doses by the end of the month, according to an estimate provided by health officials earlier this week. The first doses will focus on health care workers at high risk, along with staff and residents of long-term care facilities, McClatchy has previously reported.
Initial doses will go to about 40 facilities in 29 counties, one pharmacy serving long-term care facilities across the state, two tribal nations and one “urban Indian health facility,” Michele Roberts, who’s leading COVID-19 vaccine planning and distribution at the state Department of Health, said at the news conference.
Medical organizations are identifying health care workers at the highest risk, Inslee said, such as those who work routinely with COVID-19 positive patients.
As the state gets additional allocations, more organizations and counties will start receiving the vaccine, Roberts said.
Inslee said he’s “extremely confident,” given the rigorous process, that Washingtonians can safely start to receive the vaccine. He will get the vaccine himself once it’s his turn to do so based on his age and health conditions.
State Health Officer Dr. Kathy Lofy said she’ll also get vaccinated as soon as she’s eligible. She endorsed the FDA’s decision to authorize the vaccine’s use and said she supports the use of the vaccine in Washington state.
“At this time, I believe without any reservations that the benefits of this vaccine far exceed any risks,” she said.
The Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup sent a letter dated Dec. 12 to the governors of California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington voicing the experts’ unanimous approval. The group was launched due to concerns raised that politics might somehow “intrude on the scientific assessment,” Inslee explained.
The 17-member group includes experts in medicine, pediatrics, infectious disease, immunology, vaccinology and vaccine safety, epidemiology, public health, equity and biostatistics, according to the group’s letter.
On the group sit three people who are on the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee and the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, according to the letter, and nine who’ve participated in those groups’ vaccine reviews “over many decades.”
It also endorsed the transparency and rigor of federal review processes, found that equity had been considered appropriately in clinical trials and should continue to be “a guiding principle,” and recommended the states avoid any undue delay in providing people access to the vaccine.
“I was enormously reassured by the rigor and transparency of the FDA and CDC reviews,” workgroup member Dr. Ed Marcuse said in a news release. “I am now confident in the safety and efficacy of this Pfizer vaccine. We have sufficient information to recommend its immediate use so we can begin to reduce the horrific toll of this pandemic.”
The workgroup’s letter also noted “many important unknowns regarding the effects” of the approved vaccine, such as the duration of the protection it provides and its safety in pregnant women and young people under age 16.
Marcuse said at the press conference that studies showed a high degree of immunity after immunization, and that there’s “every reason to believe” it will provide “durable immunity,” though it’s too soon to tell for exactly how long.
“I think the best way to interpret uncertainty is not as a problem, but simply as things that we haven’t determined yet,” Dr. John Dunn, another member of the workgroup, said. These things are being investigated, he said, and studies are ongoing.
“All of the studies that are being done on this and on other vaccines are going to continue until all the data they want to collect is available,” he said.
The trials demonstrated the vaccine is 95 percent effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19 disease, he said, calling that “terrific by any measure.” And the efficacy was high across different ages and racial and ethnic groups.
He, too, will get the vaccine as soon as he’s eligible.
State health officials have said repeatedly that it will take several months to get the vaccine to everyone who wants it, and that the arrival of the vaccine does not negate the need for the public to take preventive measures such as wearing face coverings and maintaining space from one another.
Safety measures will continue for the “months to come” Inslee said, and personal commitments now have “added value” with the end in sight. He emphasized a need to celebrate December holidays safely.
“We know now we can see the port, we can see the safe harbor,” Inslee said. “It’s in view with this vaccine. But we’re not in port yet, and it’s just not the moment to jump ship. We see safety on the horizon, but we’ve all got to keep pulling on this so we can get to that safe harbor together with the minimum loss of life.”
This story was originally published December 13, 2020 at 11:43 AM with the headline "Washington Gov. Inslee: With OK from Western States group, vaccine could start arriving Monday."
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