COVID-19 vaccine distribution capacity across southern Nevada outpacing doses received
The number of COVID-19 vaccines the state of Nevada is receiving from the federal government is much lower than the capacity at which counties can administer vaccinations, analysis by the I-Team shows.
More than 210,000 doses have been administered to Nevadans since December, Candice McDaniel, bureau chief at the Division of Public and Behavioral Health, said Thursday. McDaniel noted the number of doses administered is higher than what is reported on the CDC's website.
Over the past several weeks, Nevada has received 36,000 doses per week from the federal government, McDaniel said. Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nevada, and McDaniel both said Thursday that Nevada would soon get more than 42,000 a week for the next three weeks.
The Biden Administration has also pledged to order 200 million more doses, Horsford said. States are also moving to a three-week timeline for vaccine orders, compared to the previous standard of one-week, McDaniel said. This will allow better planning and county allocation, she said.
During a joint news conference Thursday, Clark County Commission Chair Marilyn Kirkpatrick and Horsford said the timeline would accelerate as the federal government sends more vaccine to Nevada.
Clark County is vaccinating about 15,000 people per day at its sites across the Valley, officials said Thursday. Kirkpatrick said the county's weekly capacity is maxed out at 92,000 doses per week, which is much higher than the actual amount of vaccine the county is receiving. The 92,000-dosage number does not include utilizing private partners to administer the vaccine, she said.
But at that rate, it would take until July to vaccine the county's population of 2.2 million people with one dose, as per the latest number from the U.S. Census Bureau. Two doses are required with both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, the two FDA-approved vaccines on the market. A third vaccine under review would require one dose.
With 42,000 doses available in Nevada per week as of now, it would take more than a year to give every Nevadan their first dose.
Horsford said the federal government determines how much vaccine to send each state from census data up to four years old. The information is for adults 18 and older, he said.
"We have to get more vaccines, but also need to again underscore the need for people to practice CDC guidelines around testing and all the other things that are going to help us crush this virus," Horsford said.
Kirkpatrick compared ramping up efforts to how testing rolled out last year. She noted 70% of Clark County's population was interested in getting vaccinated.
"We have all of the pieces in place and we'll be ready to go," she said. "You have to have the supply in order to build capacity."
Earlier this week, the state's COVID-19 Task Force said the federal government has sent about 36,000 doses a week, while the goal is to administer 18,000 a day. Nevada ranks third to last in COVID-19 vaccinations. State officials Monday pointed to challenges like a lack of communication and resources from the federal government.
Groups eligible for vaccination in Nevada as of Jan. 18 includes first responders, health care workers and adults 70 and older.
A report from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office released Thursday said there remains a lack of coordination on nationwide vaccination efforts.
"We remain deeply troubled by the lack of sufficient federal action on critical gaps identified and by the lack of clear plans to address these gaps," the report said. "For example, a clear and comprehensive vaccine distribution plan remains a work in progress." The report did not mention any states specifically.
New COVID-19 cases are dropping from their January highs and have been hovering around 1,000 this week, data showed Thursday. Hospitalizations continue to drop and Nevada's test positivity rate is continuing its downward trend.