Last Updated on December 29, 2020 – 8:40 PM CST
Updated: Dec 29, 2020, 8:30 pm: The Moore County Hospital District (MCHD) said Tuesday that they had received the first shipment of 500 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine.
MCHD said in the statement, “Healthcare workers are receiving priority for the vaccinations, followed by at risk individuals in the community based on the amount of vaccine available.”
Moore County Hospital District (MCHD) was among several Texas Panhandle medical facilities set to receive the vaccine this week as part of the third round of COVID vaccine distribution in Texas.
Moore County Hospital District made the request for the vaccine several weeks ago as part of the largest national immunization program in American history.
Kori Trimble, a PA at the Moore County Family Health Clinic was the first Moore County resident to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. She along with Dr. Stephanie Diehlmann of the Wellness Clinic and Anesthesiologist Dr. Stella Tan were among the first healthcare workers to receive the vaccine.
Texas DSHS has published a list of locations each week that will receive the vaccine. This week marks the third week of the vaccine distribution program across Texas.
According to a report by the Texas Tribune, decisions on how the vaccines have been allocated are made by a state panel of advisers. The panel is composed of lawmakers, local and state health officials, and medical experts and researchers. Casie Stoughton, Director of Public Health for the City of Amarillo is a voting member of the vaccine allocation panel.
Front-line healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities are considered Phase 1A recipients and are the first Texans to receive the vaccine, which started December 14.
The Texas DSHS website lists Phase 1A as paid and unpaid workers in hospital settings working directly with patients who are positive or at high risk for COVID-19. Such as but not limited to:
- Physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, and other support staff (custodial staff, etc.)
- Additional clinical staff providing supporting laboratory, pharmacy, diagnostic, and/or rehabilitation services
- Others having direct contact with patients or infectious materials
- Long-term care staff working directly with vulnerable residents. Includes:
- Direct care providers at nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and state-supported living centers
- Physicians, nurses, personal care assistants, custodial, food service staff
- EMS providers who engage in 9-1-1 emergency services like pre-hospital care and transport
- Home health care workers, including hospice care, who directly interface with vulnerable and high-risk patients
- Residents of long-term care facilities
According to DSHS, once all willing Phase 1A individuals have been vaccinated, Phase 1B recipients might be able to get the vaccine starting as early as December 28 and into January 2021. These include:
- People 65 years of age and older
- People 16 years of age and older with at least one chronic medical condition that puts them at increased risk for severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19, such as but not limited to:
- Cancer
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies
- Solid organ transplantation
- Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher)
- Pregnancy
- Sickle cell disease
- Type 2 diabetes mellitus
As of December 29th, DSHS reports Moore County has 100 estimated active cases, 45 COVID-19 related fatalities, and 1,812 total confirmed cases of the virus.
Moore County Health Authority Report
The Moore County Health Authority (MCHA) released it’s second report Tuesday afternoon. The report shows 24 current active COVID-19 cases. The MCHA report is based only on data from Moore County medical providers and shows a decline of 39 active cases from the previous MCHA report on December 23rd.
