Hudson County Hospitals Administer First COVID Vaccines Monday

SECAUCUS, NJ — Hudson County's hospitals, from Bayonne to Secaucus, received their first shipment of the coronavirus vaccine Monday afternoon, and doctors and nurses started being inoculated that same day.

Additionally, Hudson County is working at warp speed to open a public vaccine distribution center in Kearny, which is scheduled to open its doors later this week.

The county-wide vaccine site is located at what's called the USS Juneau Center at 110 Hackensack Avenue in Kearny. Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise will give the media a tour of the center Tuesday afternoon, and the USS Juneau is scheduled to start giving out its first round of vaccines to the public this week (before Christmas).

The speed at which the United States is distributing the vaccine to the American public is unprecedented. All the hospitals — Christ Hospital, Bayonne and Hoboken, owned by CarePoint, and Hudson Regional — received the Moderna vaccine. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration approved the Moderna vaccine just three days earlier, on Friday.

The Moderna vaccine is the one that will primarily be given out to the U.S. public.

So far, the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are the first two to be approved by the FDA. Johnson & Johnson is in the third and final phase of its vaccine trial, with 45,000 participants. Johnson & Johnson, headquartered in New Jersey, said they expect they will know their vaccine's efficacy by the end of January.

Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines had trials that used at least 30,000 volunteers and they both require two shots.

Christ Hospital in Jersey City received 300 doses of the vaccine and starting giving its front-line workers shots Monday afternoon.

One hundred doses each are scheduled to arrive at Hoboken University Medical Center and Bayonne Medical Center Tuesday.

Hudson Regional Hospital in Secaucus also has 100 doses, and began administering the vaccine to hospital staff Tuesday morning. EMTs, nurses, doctors and hospital janitors will be given the vaccine throughout the day Tuesday at Hudson Regional.

Mayor Mike Gonnelli will hold a press conference at 1 p.m. Tuesday afternoon to update the public on how the vaccinations are working. Gonnelli was scheduled to personally get the vaccine Tuesday afternoon, along with Hudson Regional CEO Dr. Nizar Kifaieh, but Gonnelli said he decided to decline because he is not a healthcare worker.

"I wanted to get the vaccine and I can't wait to get it, but I bowed out because I am not a front-line worker," the Secaucus mayor told Patch. "I want to save the first round of vaccines for doctors and nurses. However, I will get it when it becomes next available for first responders. I cannot wait."

Gonnelli is a volunteer firefighter in Secaucus.

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