As Denton County Public Health prepares to begin offering second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to residents who have already received their first, Director Matt Richardson said logistical concerns could be on the horizon between provider and recipient confusion and residents who simply don’t return for their second shot.
Richardson addressed the vaccination effort and other coronavirus developments across the county at the Denton County Commissioners Court Meeting. He said next week will be the first week that DCPH will be able to offer the second dose of the Moderna vaccine, approximately 28 days apart, as it has been almost a month since the first clinic for medical and home caregivers was held. .
The department expects to ship the second dose this week, which Richardson says is identical to the first doses.
“The booster vaccine is no different from the first dose – it’s the exact same vaccine, in exactly the same formulation, in exactly the same volume,” Richardson said. “You can’t mix and match. If you have the Moderna or the Pfizer you have to get it [same producer] as a booster. “
Matt Richardson
But with the advent of those second doses, Richardson said, there could be a few logistical hurdles. First, he acknowledged that not everyone who received the first shot will come back for their second – a problem he said will be facing providers across the country.
“I’m sure it won’t be a 100% return, so we’ll fix that problem,” said Richardson. “That will undoubtedly become a national and national concern.”
For now, DCPH’s plan is to only give second doses to residents it also gave the first, with Richardson adding that the department does not recommend switching providers for that second shot. That recommendation is thanks to the state’s allocation system, which it says will ship vaccines specific for use as second doses to suppliers based on their original allocations so that everyone has enough.
State officials, including Governor Greg Abbott himself, have previously addressed that concern after some health care providers set aside some of their original allocations to have enough to vaccinate recipients twice.
However, some of that confusion seems to remain with recipients and providers alike, as Precinct 4 Commissioner Dianne Edmondson said at the meeting that she has received calls from residents whose original caregivers told them they were ‘alone’ when it comes to the second dose. . In response, Richardson echoed state guidelines to carriers, adding that it would be difficult for DCPH to absorb the slack.
“Even if a pharmacy or doctor’s office says otherwise … the assignments will follow – if they give 100 first doses, they will get a booster assignment of another 100, and they are expected to vaccinate the second dose for those same patients,” Richardson said. “If we have supplemental doses, we might be able to open those up to the public. I’m not sure how we would coordinate that.”
DCPH spokesperson Jennifer Rainey stated via email that the department has received the 6,000 doses it was assigned for the week and that they will hold two drive-thru clinics at the First Baptist Church in Lewisville Wednesday and Friday. Each will have 3,000 vaccines, the same size as last Thursday’s clinic at the CH Collins Athletic Complex in Denton, and will still only be available by appointment through DCPH’s online waiting list.
Future clinic plans, Rainey said, are still in the air as DCPH works through the details of offering both the first and second doses of the vaccine.