Roy Exum
Hamilton County has a lot of company both in the state and around the country in bungling distribution of the coronavirus vaccine. In Tullahoma long lines stood outside for hours vying for just 100 doses and there were glitches in almost all of the state’s 95 counties as the huge demand easily outweighed availability of the Pfizer vaccine. And if you can believe it, a retired librarian in Orlando called a special telephone number to make a reservation a whopping 189 times, only to be flummoxed by the overwhelmed system.
“We’ve talked all weekend how we can best serve our people,” Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger said on Sunday.
“The biggest problem is there is no right answer for any counties because none of us has ever experienced something of this magnitude. There is simply not enough supply.”
The mayor said he was tremendously sensitive to any of the elderly citizens who waited for six hours with no rest room facilities available but, as he groped for solutions, he found that some were out of the Health Department’s control. “It was very plain that we were going to open at 9 a.m. But when some determined people arrived at 4 a.m., I don’t think it is fair for them to say there was a five-hour wait as though the Health Department was at fault,” he reasoned.
“I get it. I know they want the vaccine. So, when other people arrive at 8 a.m. – still one hour before we opened -- there was a huge back-up already. Traffic was a mess. I am not quite sure how we handle that problem because the health department, emergency management, the Highway Patrol, and our police officers had nothing to do with the public’s reaction. We can’t dictate human nature. We opened at 9 a.m., just like we said we would.
“I’ve apologized for our mistakes, and I’ll apologize anytime the county is at fault, but some of the criticism isn’t quite fair,” he said in defense of those he’s watched work seven days a week for months. “If you think quarantine is bad, remember some of these people haven’t seen the families or their friends since who knows how long. They are heroes to me,” Coppinger said, “and if we get a shipment of vaccine on a Thursday or Friday, they will work all weekend to deliver it.
“I am grateful we are using a drive-by method rather than asking people to stand in line. It keeps people warm and comfortable, not only when they get the vaccine but also when we ask that they stay afterwards for at least 30 minutes to guard against any reactions like anaphylactic shock, which we can immediately deal with because doctors and nurses are only about 100 yards away,” he said. “It keeps people distanced from others, enhances the benefits of masking; it’s a good solution.”
Coppinger said that on Monday morning he will be able to identify a new site to deliver more vaccine on Tuesday or Wednesday. “We are supposed to get a new shipment of vaccine tomorrow, but I don’t know how much until it actually gets here. I understand it will be the Moderna vaccine but, until it actually arrives where we can see it, we can’t be certain. We also can’t schedule the next dosage date. I urge people to check the health department website for updates and new information – www.health.hamiltontn.org
Health experts on every level agree both the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccines have “about a 99-percent reliability” but both are given in two doses. “The second dose of Pfizer needs to be given in 21 days. With Moderna it is 28 days and, no, they are not interchangeable. Those with their first shot must take the same brand as their second shot. “Actually the No. 2 shot is just a repeat of the first vaccine,” Coppinger explained and said he hopes the No. 2 shot will require little waiting.
“Once the first shot is given, we have the identity of that person. The state is coordinating delivery of the second dose so we’ll be sure to have Pfizer on hand for the No. 2 dose. It is very, very important to follow the timetable. I would imagine we will have a special line for the repeat dose. We can prepare 200 doses per hour and there is a huge motivation factor to get the second dose at the specified time.”
Thursday was the first day seniors were eligible to get the vaccines and by the end of the day 1,158 doses had been administered. Earlier in the week vaccines were administered to First Responders and other top-tier providers. This means that during the week starting on January 18, the second round will begin to be due to between 3,000-to-4,000 who are in the process. It is estimated by the Pfizer and Moderna scientists, that one week after the second dose the vaccine will be in full effect.
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MYTH CONTROL NO. 1 – A Chattanooga television station has a tape where an unnamed person claimed to have a “inside contact” at the Health Department who helped him obtain the vaccine. With the close monitoring, safeguards, the health department’s long-established integrity, and county’s dedication to fairness, this is untrue. If it was found to be true, it would be dealt with swiftly, harshly, and would likely involve criminal charges. “We are going to be as fair, as open, and as honest as we can possibly be,” said Coppinger, with no mention of the tape nor the allegation.
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MYTH NO. 2 – The state of Tennessee will not withhold vaccines for those now in nursing homes to give to First Responders, doctors and nurses. “I am told on Monday that the pharmaceutical companies Walgreen’s and CVS will begin accepting vaccines to administer to the 19 long-term care and assisted-living living facilities in Hamilton County. This is a Federal program and those vaccines will not affect what the Health Department is being allocated for the general public,” said Coppinger
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TEST, TEST, TEST – Anyone who has been to a holiday gathering where a COVID case has since been detected, or who finds out a close friend is exhibiting symptoms, should go immediately to the testing facility at the Alstom site on Riverfront Parkway and get tested. “It doesn’t matter that you got tested one week ago … that was a week ago,” Coppinger said. “We are now open seven days a week, from 8:30 until 2:30 p.m. each day, and anyone who is positive must quarantine and seek medical assistance. The best chance we have of overcoming COVID in our community is to work together and stop it.”
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FROM ‘THE WEEK’ – Ryan Cooper, writing on the news magazine ‘The Week’ website www.theweek.com , says there was never any doubt the United States would bobble the pandemic virus vaccine at first: “There was no way this wasn't going to be a disaster. Yet a great many states and cities are whiffing it. It appears that the culprit here is some combination of authorities getting tangled up over who deserves the vaccine the most, snarling the process with elaborate eligibility requirements (a classic American neurosis), and the blistering incompetence that has characterized nearly every level of the American state response to the pandemic.
“Vaccines are being shipped out across the country, but most of them have not yet made it into actual Americans,” Cooper claims. “Bloomberg has been tracking vaccination progress across the country -- at time of writing, about 12.5 million doses have been sent out, yet just over 3 million shots have actually been administered. At this rate, it will take something like seven years to inoculate the whole country, and many doses may expire before they can be used.”
royexum@aol.com