'A Turning Point': Coronavirus Vaccinations Begin In Washington

SEATTLE — Almost eleven months after the first coronavirus case in the United States was diagnosed in Washington, and more than 2,900 deaths and 200,000 illnesses recorded across the state since, Tuesday ushered in a major milestone in the fight against COVID-19.

A dozen frontline health care workers became the first people in the state to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine Tuesday morning at the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle's Montlake neighborhood.

"I want to thank each of them for their service to UW Medicine now, and through these many months of the pandemic," said Lisa Brandenburg, president of UW Medicine. "They are the true stars and heroes of our fight against this COVID-19 pandemic."

Amy Fry, an intensive care unit nurse at Harborview Medical Center, was the first to be immunized during a televised news conference and described the moment as a big step toward long-awaited relief.

"I feel excited and for the first time in a while, I feel hope that there is an end coming to this," Fry said. "It has been a long, exhausting road, and I think we're all ready for this to happen and for immunity to happen. I know we're still a long time away from that but we're taking steps toward that and it feels really good"

Fry has worked in the Harborview ICU throughout the pandemic and said she hoped her early participation would help put others at ease to get the vaccine when it becomes more widely available.

"We've seen a lot of terrible things there," Fry said. "If this can prevent you from ending up in that ICU or prevent you from losing a loved one, I think it's super important. Watch us, let us be your example, let you see that nothing bad is happening to us, and then step up."

The workers immunized Tuesday included registered nurses, emergency room technicians, a flight nurse and a Seattle firefighter. UW Medicine received nearly 3,900 doses of the Pfizer vaccine for its four hospital campuses Monday, and vaccination clinics for eligible workers are slated to begin Thursday. For full protection, the vaccine requires two doses, spaced about three weeks apart.

State health officials said more than 62,000 doses of the vaccine would be delivered to 17 facilities in 13 counties by the end of the week, and 222,000 doses by the end of December. More than 180,000 doses of a vaccine developed by Moderna are expected by the end of the month, pending final federal approvals. The Food and Drug Administration signaled Tuesday that emergency authorization could arrive by the end of the week.

Under state and federal guidance, vaccinations in the first phase are limited to health care workers, at-risk first responders, and residents and staff of long-term care facilities — an estimated 500,000 Washingtonians. The state Department of Health expects to complete vaccinations in the first priority group around mid-January.

"I do want to remind everyone that the vaccine, while it is the light at the end of the tunnel, the way we get to population immunity, we're not there yet," said Dr. John Lynch, director of infection prevention and control at UW Medicine. "We still have a long way to go ... we need to continue to take all the important measures to keep in our communities to keep everyone safe."

Specifics on what groups will be eligible for the vaccine next are still being finalized, and state health officials expect vaccinating the general public will likely continue into the summer.