OAKLAND (CBS SF) – Acting FEMA Administrator Robert Fenton has denied a request from California health officials to extend shipments of COVID-19 vaccines to bulk vaccine sites in Oakland and Los Angeles beyond the April 11 deadline.
Since the sites opened in February, the thousands of doses administered have been independent of vaccine allocation to Alameda County and California health departments.
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When asked by Cal-OES, Fenton said, “FEMA has shipped all of the promised vaccine to the state of California, plus a few extra doses of Pfizer. And with the approval of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, we were able to vaccinate tens of thousands more people with one product. “
“On Sunday, April 11th, the eight week CVC mission will be completed. But that doesn’t mean the vaccinations will end. Cal OES is working with local health authorities on a transition plan to transfer management of CVCs to local organizations. “
Fenton said when the two states opened, California was receiving approximately 1.5 million doses of vaccine a week.
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Each site was set up to vaccinate 6,000 people a day, but they administered up to 7,500 shots a day, according to the state Emergency Services Bureau. Because the locations are federally managed, these recordings are separate from the total weekly allocation in California, which is now approximately 1.8 million recordings per week.
“Going forward, California is expected to receive at least 2 million doses a week for the next three weeks,” said Fenton. “On Thursday April 1, the state said it is expected to receive up to 3 million doses per week by the end of April. In addition, pharmacies are to receive an increase of 500,000 vaccines per week. “
The bulk sites were expected to remain open under an agreement between the state and local health ministries. Fenton said federal funding for the two locations would continue through October 30.
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“FEMA stands ready to leave any field-hired staff in place if the facilities are relocated,” he said. “We are also ready to leave the three mobile units assigned to each CVC.”
