Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer hopes to begin distributing its COVID-19 vaccine this month. California will reportedly receive 327,000 doses.

LA Times Reporter Jaclyn Cosgrove asks, is Los Angeles County ready for its most challenging health crisis ever? 

Cosgrove said there are still a lot of logistical questions to work out.

“Overall, what we know is that essential health care workers will probably get this vaccine first. From then, as more vaccine is produced, California and L.A. County will get that vaccine on kind of a rolling basis until we’re at a good vaccine capacity, where the rest of us healthy folks can get it,” said Cosgrove.

State and County health officials are hoping the vaccine will be available in May 2021.

“Everybody is hoping, facing, and praying for this vaccine summer. My birthday is in May, and I am also hoping for a vaccine birthday present,” added Cosgrove.

When the vaccine is available, health officials want it to be distributed at accessible places like pharmacies.

“First of all, with the Pfizer vaccine, it has to be stored in an ultra-cool temperature. It has to be kept at negative 70 degrees Celsius, similar to the average temperature on Mars. So L.A. County has been scrambling to get these ultra-cool freezers that they want to place equitably around the county. Then you have Walgreens and CVS that are working with the Federal Government and other pharmacy companies because they already handle complicate logistics,” said Cosgrove. 

One of the biggest concerns regarding the vaccine is equity.

“You want to make sure that everyone in L.A. County has access to a vaccine. There was a big snafu when testing was set up because you ended up with communities of colors not having any testing sites. And, then there were minimal testing sites, and I think that our county officials are concerned about that happening again,” added Cosgrove.

Questions are being raised about the kind of Federal help there will be.

“The County has struggled to formulate what its exact plan is. Our health director Barbara Ferrer said multiple times that there is no plan. So, I think everyone is waiting to see if the Biden administration will have a clearer, federal plan when the administration switches over. There are still a lot of questions. Overall, in terms of Federal health, one thing to remember is that this vaccine will not cost anyone any money. The Federal Government is taking on the bill, and so when you show up to your community to get the vaccine, you won’t have to pay anything,” said Cosgrove.