COVID-19 vaccinations continue in Kansas, Missouri. How many have gotten a shot so far?
Nearly 1,000 Missourians and hundreds of Kansans, if not more, have been vaccinated against COVID-19 three days into a massive inoculation campaign that will last months.
The vaccinations so far have centered exclusively on frontline healthcare workers. But they will quickly expand in the coming weeks to include tens of thousands of nursing home residents and employees in both states.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson’s office said Wednesday afternoon that nearly 1,000 healthcare workers had been vaccinated already. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly didn’t have a statewide estimate during a news conference on Wednesday, but said Stormont Vail Hospital in Topeka alone has already inoculated 600 workers.
The shots so far represent a tiny fraction of the eventual millions both states aim to deliver. For now, an extremely limited number of doses means only healthcare workers are receiving injections.
At the same time, the vaccinations are the most promising development in months in Missouri and Kansas’s fight against the pandemic, which continues to ravage both states. Missouri has reported nearly 20,000 cases in the past week and 109 deaths. Kansas on Wednesday announced 4,551 new cases since Monday and 144 more deaths.
“We have been preparing for a COVID-19 vaccine for many months now, and everything has gone according to our state vaccine plan,” Parson said in a statement. “Hospital administrators, health care workers, and Missourians from across the state have expressed how thankful they are that a vaccine is here and see these first shipments as a sign of hope for the future.”
Missouri and Kansas have been racing to vaccinate since Pfizer’s vaccine received emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration last Friday and initial shipments of doses began arriving early this week.
Nearly all of 51,675 doses included in Missouri’s first shipment have been distributed to vaccination sites, Parson’s office said. Kelly said Kansas began receiving shipments of its roughly 24,000 initial doses on Monday.
The FDA is expected to authorize the Moderna vaccine within days, which will begin to boost supplies in both states. Missouri is expected to receive 105,300 doses of the Moderna vaccine next week; Kansas is expected to receive 49,000 doses.
Still, Kelly stressed that normalcy remains several months away.
“Until then, we must remain vigilant,” Kelly said. “We must wear face coverings, physically distance, avoid gatherings, practice good hygiene and get tested.”
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 5:21 PM.
