Turner says the future megasites of the vaccine depend on supply

HOUSTON – Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Monday that the future megavits of the coronavirus vaccine will depend on the supply of doses received by the city.

Turner said the city received 8,000 doses Friday morning, allowing the city to open 1,000 additional slots for meetings at Saturday’s mega-vaccination site at Minute Maid Park, where a total of 3,852 people were shot. .

The mayor said he wants to open megasites on the north and south side of the city as soon as possible, but is reluctant to announce more detailed plans, as he is not sure if the city will receive another vaccine shipment this week.

“We need everyone to work with a great sense of urgency,” Turner said.

Turner said the demand for the vaccine far exceeds the amount of vaccine available. Turner said that as soon as more doses of the vaccine are received, the city will begin opening additional slots for programming.

Stephen Williams, director of the Houston Department of Health, said that of the more than 22,000 vaccines received by the city, 14,297 were administered and 1,900 were transferred to other providers to ensure fair distribution of vaccines.

The Houston Department of Health reported 1,460 additional cases Monday, bringing the total number of cases to more than 131,000. Three other deaths were reported, including Jose Rubio, a 27-year veteran of the city’s Public Works Department, bringing the total number of deaths in Houston to 1,600.

Turner said coronavirus hospitalizations are rapidly approaching levels that were reached during the summer wave.

Dr. David Persse, chief physician in Houston, said that with a current positivity rate of 17.4%, he believes hospitalizations will soon exceed the numbers seen in the summer.

“Hospitals are really in a very tense position right now,” Persse said.

Officials again urged people to wear masks, wash their hands, keep their distance, avoid large meetings and be tested.