HHS secretary asks Americans to stay on guard at Thanksgiving as officials prepare for COVID vaccine rollout

The United States hopes to ship 6.4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine within 24 hours of Food and Drug Administration authorization, and each state has been told how much to expect.

The initial shipments could go out in the next three weeks, likely days after a crucial FDA advisory committee meeting on Dec. 10, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said at a briefing Tuesday.

That’s all the more reason for Americans not to let their COVID guard down over Thanksgiving, he said.

“I know that the possibility of not being able to see family and friends over the holiday is heartbreaking for all of us,” he said.

“There is such a bright day ahead with what this team is delivering on vaccines and therapeutics. We want to make sure that everybody is here for next year's Thanksgiving,” Azar said at a briefing by Operation Warp Speed, the White House-led initiative to quickly develop COVID-19 vaccines and treatments.

He urged the nation to follow public health guidelines – wash hands, keep your distance from others and wear face coverings when you can’t distance.

“Especially now as we approach Thanksgiving, I ask all Americans: Please be on guard, take care of yourselves,” Azar said.

40 million vaccine doses by the end of the year

By the end of the year the United States hopes to have close to 40 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine, said General Gustave Perna, who oversees logistics for Operation Warp Speed.

Vaccines will first go to front-line healthcare workers and then to essential workers, adults with high-risk medical conditions and in nursing homes, and people aged 65 and older, according to guidelines being worked out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

The initial doses will go out as soon as the Food and Drug Administration authorizes a vaccine. Pfizer has applied for an Emergency Use Authorization for its vaccine. Moderna is expected to follow within a week or two.

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“We believe we can distribute vaccine to all 64 jurisdictions" — all 50 states, eight U.S. territories and six large cities — "within 24 hours of FDA authorization,” Azar said. The vaccine will be allocated by population. After the initial push, vaccine doses will be shipped weekly.

States know how much is coming in first shipment

On Friday, Operation Warp Speed told each state and territory how many doses it would get in the first round of deliveries so they could say where to ship them.

Companies, states, public health departments and Department of Defense logistics experts are running tabletop exercises to fine-tune the process, Perna said.

“We're one week closer to distributing the vaccine. We're one week closer to refining to the exactness that we need to have to do this,” he said.

Pfizer's vaccine, expected to be the first to be delivered, must be stored at minus 94 degrees. The company is holding rehearsals to get ready for the rollout, Perna said.

That includes going over how sites such as hospitals order doses, take delivery, open the special ultracold shipping containers full of dry ice, and handle the vials once they’re removed.

“I've actually put my hands in the box. I pulled trays out, I watched and I timed myself in execution. It is a very, very doable process. Our professionals, both at the medical level and then at the pharmacy level, are very well-versed on how to do this,” Perna said.

States are now putting together plans on how they will deliver the vaccine, down to a single tray of vials, Perna said.

Each site will receive vaccines and vaccination kits with syringes, face masks for the people administering the vaccine, alcohol prep pads, instructions and COVID-19 vaccination records cards so people know when to come back for their second dose and which vaccine to get.

Azar promises smooth transition to Biden administration

The initial period of vaccine distribution will occur just as the nation is transitioning from the Trump administration to the administration of President-elect Joe Biden. Operation Warp Speed is working to make that transition smooth.

Rear Adm. Erica Schwartz briefed the Biden team Monday night on Operation Warp Speed, Azar said — the same day the General Services Administration authorized agencies to begin transition planning.

"We will ensure coordinated briefings with them to ensure they're getting whatever information that they feel they need," Azar said.

He said he had committed to Schwartz that the transition would be professional, cooperative and collaborative, "in the best spirit of looking out for the health and wellbeing of the American people."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 6.4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine could ship in weeks