US asked to give priority to key frontline workers as distribution of Modern photos begins

(Reuters) – An advisory group on Sunday recommended key US workers and people aged 75 and over should be next in line to be inoculated as the distribution of Moderna Inc vaccine, the second approved coronavirus vaccine, started all over the country.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted 13 to 1 to recommend 30 million key frontline workers, including first responders, teachers, food and agriculture, industry processors, U.S. postal services, public transportation, and food store workers have the next priority for vaccines.

In total, this move would make 51 million people eligible to be inoculated in the next round. It was not clear immediately when the next round would begin.

Approximately 200 million people, including non-frontal workers, such as those in the media, finance, energy and IT and communications industries, people in the age group 65-74 and those aged 16 to 64 with conditions High risk should be in the next round, the recommended panel.

States, which distribute shots to their residents, will use the advisory panel guidelines to decide how to allocate vaccines while reserves are scarce.

Inoculation against the disease is essential for the safe reopening of large parts of the economy and the reduction of disease risks in factories, factories and crowded warehouses. However, confusion has erupted over who is considered essential during a pandemic.

Prior to the vote, many companies and industry groups lobbied for their US employees to receive vaccines immediately after health professionals and long-term care residents.

Meanwhile, FedEx Corp and United Parcel Service Inc trucks have begun picking up doses from warehouses for deliveries to hospitals and elsewhere.

Moderna vaccine vials were filled at the facility of pharmaceutical service provider Catalent Inc. in Bloomington, Indiana. McKesson Corp. delivers doses from facilities in places like Louisville, Kentucky and Memphis, Tennessee – close to UPS and FedEx air hubs.

Both FedEx and UPS said that deliveries work smoothly and that everything goes exactly as planned.

Separately, US health officials are monitoring the new strain of COVID-19 appearing in the UK, Surgeon General Jerome Adams said on Sunday, adding that any mutation shows that people still need to protect themselves from the new coronavirus while waiting for vaccination.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and scientists announced on Saturday that the new strain of virus has led to rising infections, tightening COVID-19 restrictions for London and nearby areas and disrupting Christmas holiday plans for millions of people.

The variant, which officials say is up to 70% more transmissible than the original, has raised concerns about a wider spread. Several European countries, including Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands, have said they are taking steps to prevent people from arriving in the UK, including bans on flights and trains.

The distribution of the Moderna vaccine in more than 3,700 locations in the United States will greatly expand the launch started last week by Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech SE.

The head of the US COVID-19 vaccine program, Moncef Slaoui, said it is most likely the first Moderna vaccine, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration on Friday morning.

“We are looking forward to the vaccine. It will be slightly easier to distribute, because it does not require a (a) low temperature like Pfizer “, Slaoui told CNN.

The US government plans to deliver 5.9 million Moderna photos and 2 million Pfizer photos this week.

Data from the CDC shows that 2.84 million doses have been distributed and 556,208 photos have been administered so far.

The start of delivery for the Moderna vaccine will significantly expand the availability of COVID-19 vaccines, as US deaths from respiratory disease have reached over 316,000 in the 11 months since the first documented cases in the US. (Chart: tmsnrt.rs/34pvUyi)

Some states choose to use Moderna photos for hard-to-reach rural areas because they can be stored for 30 days in standard temperature refrigerators. Pfizer must be delivered and stored at minus 70 Celsius (minus 94 Fahrenheit) and can only be kept at the standard refrigerator temperature for five days.

The initial doses were given to health professionals. Programs at Walgreens and CVS pharmacies to distribute the Pfizer vaccine to long-term care units are expected to begin Monday.