Health Department outlined COVID-19 vaccine distribution drill in U.S. Virgin Islands

The Virgin Islands Department of Health said on November 30, 2020, that it was conducting a distribution drill ahead of the expected arrival of a COVID-19 vaccine.

During the Government House weekly press briefing, Territorial Epidemiologist Dr. Esther Ellis said the exercise used a mock vaccine to test ordering, delivery and reporting procedures for the Pfizer vaccine during the first of three phases.

Dr. Ellis said the territory's plan called for redistributing vaccine from facilities with ultra-cold refrigeration to providers that would administer doses. She said two facilities with ultra-cold refrigeration units on St. Croix and St. Thomas would serve as hubs for storage, while six of the 15 health-care providers enrolled in the COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Program would serve as spokes in the drill.

The department said it was working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency and the Virgin Islands National Guard on the hub-and-spoke approach.

Dr. Ellis said the first phase of actual vaccinations would cover clinical staff, first responders, people with immunocompromised conditions and residents of long-term care facilities. Later phases would include elderly residents, chronically homeless behavioral health patients and incarcerated people, with broader public availability expected in spring 2021.

At the same briefing, Government House Communications Director Richard Motta Jr. said the governor's COVID-19 task force was re-evaluating boating guidelines and mask requirements while people were at sea.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/health-department-gives-details-on-distribution-drill-for-arrival-of-future-covid-19-vaccine/