Pima County Brings More Coronavirus Vaccines To Rural Areas

TUCSON, AZ — Health care providers in rural and semi-urban parts of Pima County received a much-needed boost of coronavirus vaccines on Tuesday, according to county health officials.

In a news release, Pima County said that the 2,100 additional Moderna vaccines will need to be used within seven days and are specifically earmarked for residents in the Phase 1B group of the county's vaccination plan, which includes teachers, first responders and senior citizens over the age of 75.

Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry said in a statement that the county's vaccine rollout has been impeded by limited doses, despite all of its efforts to set up vaccination sites and registration infrastructure.

“Vaccine availability from the state and federal government remains the sole rate limiting factor impacting vaccine coverage in Pima County,” Huckelberry wrote in a memo to the Board of Supervisors. “Due to our limited allocation of vaccine we are unable to disseminate the vaccine more broadly and are very cautious about not causing excessive demand or expectations that local partners cannot meet.”

The 2,100 new doses from the state will serve a little over over 11 percent of the population over the age of 75 in the county's rural and semi-urban areas.

Marana Health Center received 800 doses and began drive-thru vaccinations Wednesday for those older than 75. The boost will allow the center to inoculate approximately 200 people every day for four days.

United Community Health Center in the southern part of the county also received 800 doses and is planning four large-scale events to distribute the vaccine.

Desert Senita Communiy Health Center in western Pima County received 500 doses, as well as the 25 remaining from its Phase 1A allotment. Those 525 doses will be made available to the over 75 age group.

Those sites will be in addition to the five vaccination centers the county has already set up throughout Tucson.

As of Tuesday, Pima County has given out 53,647 doses of the vaccine, according to the Pima County Heath Department. The county has not yet expanded to provide doses for those 65 and older, though the two state vaccination sites in Phoenix are accommodating that group now.

In her Wednesday briefing, Pima County Health Director Dr. Theresa Cullen said that the county had only received 108,000 doses from the state.

"We want to make sure that we have enough vaccine to do that before we open it up to the 65 and over," she said.