Over the past week, new tiers of Missouri’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan have been activated, making an additional 2.5 million Missourians eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. However, supplies are lagging behind demand.
Governor Mike Parson attributed the limited vaccine supply to the slow distribution rate of vaccines. The state is still getting 76,000 doses delivered for this week and the same amount by the end of next week.
Parson told Missourians they need to be patient. “It is important for all Missourians to understand that until vaccines become more widely available, they will be administered on a very limited basis.”
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Director Dr. Randall Williams maintained that the limiting factor in getting vaccines to Missourians is the amount getting delivered.
The state currently reports 265,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered. That is less than half the amount the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports have been sent to Missouri. Some of those doses could still be on their way here, and facilities have 10 days to report the vaccines they have administered in a given day.
On Mon. Jan. 25, the Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center announced that the area is in Phase 1A and 1B, under Tier 1 and 2 of the COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan. They continued to emphasize that "many individuals that do not fall into those phases and tiers scheduled appointments to receive the [COVID-19] vaccine at [their] clinics this week.
The CGCPHC noted also that the vaccine is "very limited, and it is essential to vaccinate those at the highest risk", and asked those who have made appointments with them, and who were not listed in phases 1A or 1B, to please cancel their appointments to make room for those who need it most. The Cape County Health Department stated that they will be canceling appointments for those that do not meet the criteria.
The CGCPHC also stated "[they] appreciate everyone's interest in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, and in time it will be made available to everyone." Their number one priority will be to provide vaccines to "those most vulnerable".
Vaccine clinics will be open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from Jan. 25 to Jan. 29 throughout Cape Girardeau County.
For more information about the vaccine distribution plan in Missouri, you may visit covidvaccine.mo.gov.
