As San Francisco moves to expand vaccination qualifications Wednesday to 168,000 teachers, grocery store employees and emergency responders who live or work in the city, some feel they may not get their first dose shot for another two or three weeks.
This is because, like many health departments and providers across the state, San Francisco is preferring second dose shots. That means they’re giving a second shot to people who got their first shot a few weeks ago, and will delay appointments for the first shot until more vaccines arrive. Both vaccines currently available in the United States, made by Pfizer and Moderna, are given in two shots, except for 21 or 28 days.
About 91,000 San Franciscons are due to receive their second dose in the next two to three weeks, according to the Department of Public Health. The San Francisco project projects that over the next two weeks, the number of first dose appointments will decrease significantly compared to the last two weeks.
High-volume vaccination sites receiving vaccine supplies from regional health care providers similarly delay first-dose appointments until a new influx of vaccines arrives. The vaccination site at Sin College College Ledge, operated by San Francisco and UCSF, is doing only a second dose this week except Thursday, UCSF spokeswoman Kristen Bole said. There will also be only a second dose next week until UCSF receives an additional vaccine.
Sutter Health is postponing first-dose appointments at all of its large-scale Northern California vaccination sites, including the SF Market in Bayview, due to a shortage of vaccines. “Appointments will reopen as soon as more vaccines are made available to us,” Sutter spokesman Monique Binkle-Smith said.
People can get more luck by taking a first dose appointment at the Auckland Coliseum, which receives direct vaccines from the United Government. This is in part because it opened last week, while other sites that have been open for several weeks are now doing a second dose than before. San Francisco’s Moscon Center, which uses Kaiser’s vaccine, will also make first-dose and second-dose appointments after reopening on Thursday, a Kaiser spokesman said. The Moscon site has been closed since mid-February due to low vaccine supplies.
While delays in first dose appointments can be frustrating, this was to be expected.
Marine County Health Officer Dr. “These are challenges with any two-dose method,” said Matt Willis. Who do a second dose more than the first dose during the “leanest” week and are anxious at the time. Enough second dose for each. “But that’s not surprising. The challenge arises when it is associated with unpredictability of supply. And scarcity … it’s an operational reality. “
Most providers do not hold a second dose together – this strategy will significantly reduce their ability to vaccinate as many people as possible, faster – but with the first dose as much as possible in the weapon. Some providers say they expect to use all doses each week to achieve more.
“We live – I think that’s the practice in most jurisdictions – treat our doses like doses and give as many new (people) vaccines as we can,” Willis said. “And as the time for the second dose goes around, it’s only when we have to ‘loot’ from the first dose that potential new vaccinators get to make sure we’re covering the second dose.”
Catherine Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: [email protected] Twitter: GETHo
