CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Governor Greg Abbott is prioritizing distribution among first responders and Chief Robert Rocha with the Corpus Christi fire department says they have been designated as vaccine providers.
"In other words, we'll be able to administer vaccinations to those in the first tier,” said Rocha. “ And it's my understanding that the first tier includes physicians, nurses, at the hospitals, as well as first responders, with that. As soon as the fire department receives the first vaccines, we plan to vaccinate as many first responders as we can here in Nueces County."
According to the International Association of Fire Fighters, almost 12,000 fire fighters have had to be quarantined due to exposure to COVID-19 and 12 have died.
A reprise native from the association says priority access to the vaccine is a must for those on the front lines to keep everyone safe.
“Giving them priority access to the vaccination is one more tool that keeps firefighters on the job, that keeps paramedics coming to work every day, making sure citizens are safe, and at the end of the day, protecting citizens from further exposure,” said director of media relations Dough Stern.
Health experts with the pharmaceutical company behind the development of the COVID-19 vaccine say the first step to distribution is getting approved for use by the FDA, then the final distribution process could move rapidly.
“Vaccines could be distributed as quickly as 48 hours from the time of approval,” said Scott Leeton, president of Corpus Christi Police Officer Association.
“It actually streamlines the process in terms of getting the vaccine directly in the hands of those that can administer the vaccines and so we're looking forward to that.”
Leeton says it would be a good thing if the first distribution of COVID-19 vaccines would be among police officers, fire fighters and emergency medical workers.
“If first responders could receive them or be at the forefront of receiving them, I think that would be great,” said Leeton.
The first supply of vaccines could be available as early as next month.