Whatcom providers request fewer COVID vaccine doses this week — is demand running out?
Whatcom County is expecting nearly 45% fewer initial COVID-19 vaccine doses from the Washington State Department of Health this week compared to what it received last week, according to the latest vaccine update from the Whatcom County Health Department Tuesday.
The smaller allotment is, as least in part, due to providers requesting fewer doses this week after having doses left over after vaccine appointments went unfilled last week, Whatcom County Health Department Communicable Disease and Epidemiology Manager Cindy Hollinsworth said in a statement emailed to The Bellingham Herald Wednesday, April 28.
Despite those leftover vaccine doses and empty appointment slots, Hollinsworth said the health department is not concerned with Whatcom’s demand to get vaccinated running out.
“We know from national and state surveys that most people want to get vaccinated, so the demand is there,” Hollinsworth wrote. “The speed of vaccinations may slow down, and what we’re seeing might be a right-sizing of supply to demand. It may also be signaling a shift in the vaccination model, from mass vaccinations to more targeted, focused vaccination approaches, like workplace, faith-based, or neighborhood vaccine clinics.”
Last week, the county administered more than 13,000 initial vaccine doses according to the health department release, including 7,380 from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s allocation to the state Department of Health.
This week the CDC total is expecting the allocation from the state to drop to 4,140 initial doses — 3,240 fewer than last week’s allotment.
But, the health department reported it is expecting 1,170 doses will be sent to federally qualified health centers in Whatcom County this week — an increase from the 800 doses through that program last week, according to the report.
That means the county is expecting a total of 5,310 initial doses for the week of April 18, but doses from the Federal Pharmacy Partnership for this week are not yet available, according to the report.
Additionally, Whatcom is expecting 3,440 second doses this week.
For the week of April 11, the county received a total 13,620 initial doses of vaccine, with 5,440 doses through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Partnership added to the CDC and federally qualifying health center totals.
The number of doses through the Long-Term Care Pharmacy Partnership and the Indian Health Service are not available for either last week or this week.
Having to pivot the vaccination model that Hollinsworth wrote about is nothing new for the health department or area providers, she said.
“There’s one thing that’s been clear throughout this pandemic, and that’s the need to be responsive in the moment,” Hollinsworth wrote. “This is one more example of how public health and our healthcare partners have had to be nimble and adapt to meet our goals of controlling this disease.”
Monday’s vaccination report said that as of 11:59 p.m. Saturday, April 24, Whatcom County had administered 135,612 doses. The state estimates 42.46% of Whatcom County residents (96,812 people) have initiated a COVID-19 vaccine and 29.46% of Whatcom County residents (67,159 people) are fully vaccinated.
This story was originally published April 28, 2021 at 1:09 PM.
