Excela Health receives covid vaccine, set to start administering to workers on Friday

A record-breaking storm that left parts of the region under 9 inches of snow did not stop Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine from making it into Excela Health’s hands.

Officials received it Thursday, as expected. They anticipate administering it to the first employees on Friday.

Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carol Fox said Excela Health expected to receive 975 doses for each of its three hospitals — Westmoreland in Greensburg, Frick in Mt. Pleasant and Latrobe.

“We have a very aggressive vaccine schedule that we are using,” she said. “Our intent is to get it done quickly.”

Staffing has been a concern as employees are contracting the virus and off work sick or quarantining while the number of coronavirus cases in the county has been increasing for weeks. Fox said she was looking forward to Friday’s inoculations to help staff members stay healthy.

Pennsylvania is distributing its initial shipment of 97,500 vaccines to frontline healthcare workers as the virus surges. As of noon Thursday, 1,205 doses had been administered statewide, according to health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine. There have been no reports of adverse side effects.

The inoculation process has started at 16 hospitals across the state, with the remaining hospitals set to get their shipments this week, she said. Levine, who said this week’s snow did not delay vaccine deliveries, believes there will be more shipments in the coming weeks.

“This is going to take time to get to everyone, to make sure that everyone who wants the vaccine can get it,” she said.

Excela Health employees won’t be required to be vaccinated, but about 70% have indicated they would. Excela Health employs about 5,000 people. Each day, 190 employees at every Excela facility are scheduled to get inoculated, Fox said. That includes the hospitals, outpatient centers and home care employees.

Five UPMC health system employees received Pittsburgh’s first doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Monday. Allegheny Health Network anticipated workers will start getting vaccinations at its hospitals on Friday.

Despite the vaccine’s infiltration in the region, it’s still important to follow state health officials’ recommendations meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, including wearing masks and social distancing, Fox and Levine said.

“We’re going to want to see the curve significantly flatten before I would anticipate anything like that changing,” Fox said.

Nursing home residents and staff are set to receive vaccines from the state this month.

The vaccine made by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech are the first authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, kicking off the largest vaccination campaign in U.S. history. The vaccine requires two shots to be effective and must be kept at ultra-cold temperatures to remain viable.

The approval last week set off a massive shipping effort nationwide.

FDA advisers on Thursday recommended the emergency authorization of a second vaccine made by Moderna. Levine said she is hopeful the state will receive doses of that next week, if it is approved.