Panel gives OK for use of COVID-19 vaccine in Washington

A special committee of experts reviewing the Olympia-Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has approved its use in Washington and three other Western provinces, Governor Jay Inslee said on Sunday.

Health officials will begin vaccination of key healthcare professionals and residents of long-term care facilities on Tuesday.

“The immenseness of this success cannot be exaggerated,” Insley said at a late-night press conference. “It’s a great holiday season in the sense that we believe there is a bright light of recognition that the end is in front of us in the darkness of the year.”

The Western Province Scientific Safety Review Working Group has joined the Federal Pharmacy and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to turn the vaccine into a green light, Insley said. Federal agencies gave their approval late last week.

This fall, Inslee, the Governor of California, the Governor of Oregon, and the Governor of Nevada announced an additional review of the FDA-approved vaccine on concerns that the Trump administration could rush approval without thorough investigation. .. The 17-member group included specialists in medicine, pediatrics, public health, biostatistics, pharmacies, and epidemiology.

The working group gave unanimous approval on Saturday night and encouraged “immediate use of the vaccine” in all four states.

The Spokane Community Health District issued a statement on Sunday stating that there are 22 medical institutions in the area seeking approval to administer the vaccine in and around Spokane. According to the statement, the first dose in the area will be given to people in the area who meet the criteria for Providence Healthcare and Multicare, and Immediate Immunization “to allow front-line healthcare professionals to be vaccinated.” It is likely to be done.

John Donne, a member of the Washington workgroup, is a physician working on vaccine safety research and said the benefits of vaccines far outweigh the risks. It has a 95% efficacy rate, which he describes as “great in any way” and has “temporary” side effects.

Ed Marcuse, a pediatrician who was involved in the FDA’s previous vaccine review and is a member of the Washington Working Group, said government approval was a “quite thorough process” comparable to other decisions over the last decade. Said.

It is not yet clear how long the vaccine will provide immunity, Marcuse said, but as it provides a higher level of immunity to the bloodstream than is found in people who have recovered from infected COVID-19. Looks like.

Insley called the decision a “gold seal of approval” and said he hoped to ease some people’s fear of vaccination when the vaccine became available.

“I questioned and trusted this administration like no one in the country,” he said. “But what we have demonstrated is that there is scientific certainty about the safety of this product.”

An estimated 62,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine will begin arriving in Washington on Monday and will begin to be administered on Tuesday. They go to COVID-19 patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals who work in close and regular contact with the medical activities of some tribes. By the end of the month, the state will be vaccinated about 222,000 times with the vaccine.

The second vaccine, developed by Moderna, will be reviewed by the Western States group following an FDA review that may be approved this Thursday. Dosing may be started in the week of December 21st.

Insley called the beginning of vaccination the turning point in the fight against COVID-19 and quoted Winston Churchill’s famous line at the Battle of Britain as “the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end.” He added that it does not mean that the state will lift the restrictions and return to normal.

“We can’t give up masking, physical distance, or restrictions on indoor activities,” he said.

The state waits for further federal guidance before deciding how to distribute the vaccine when higher doses are available.

“As you can imagine, these are not easy decisions,” Insley said. “As much as we can, there is a way to tell Washington citizens that a particular situation will qualify you.”

The goal is for 70% of the population to reach “herd immunity” and be vaccinated to stop the outbreak of the virus, said Cathy Loffy of the State Department of Health. It is difficult to predict when the state will reach that goal, as it is not yet clear when and how much the state will be vaccinated, or what percentage of the population will choose to be vaccinated, she said. Said.

Although “it can change,” there is no state law that requires people working in a particular job to be vaccinated.

“Now I was dependent on people’s voluntary decisions to protect themselves and their loved ones,” he said.