COLUMBUS, Ohio – A year ago on Dec. 11, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration gave emergency use authorization to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, giving the world hope that the "end is in sight," as Gov. Mike DeWine said last year
Just a few days later on Dec. 14, 2020, truckloads of the vaccine arrived at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, giving the first group of Ohioans their shots.
Fifty-eight percent of Ohioans have started their vaccination process, according to the Ohio Department of Health. Columbus Public Health Commissioner Dr. Mysheika Roberts said the vaccine rollout process is a testament to the work of volunteers.
“I think as a state and my department, we’ve done an excellent job providing the vaccine in a variety of different places and making it accessible to many in our community,” said Roberts.
The rollout hasn’t been without incentives like Gov. Mike DeWine’s “Vax-A-Million,” “Vax-To-School” and Columbus Public Health’s “Vax Cash.”
“At first, I was a little reluctant like, ‘Woah that seems to be a lot of money.’ But, they said that’s what’s going to drive people in. It needs to be a high enough number that’s going to drive people in.”
Infectious Disease Physician at the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center Dr. Mahdee Sobhanie reflected on when the FDA granted emergency use authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.
“When the data came out in late November, early December that you had not one but two COVID vaccines that had an efficacy of 94% to 95% depending on the data, that was phenomenal,” said Sobhanie.
He feels education and accessibility are two major factors in the race to vaccinate.
“What are some of the concerns patients have about COVID? We have to make sure their questions, their concerns are answered and I think having vaccines readily available in offices is key," said Sobhanie.
The Pfizer vaccine is now fully regulated by the FDA.
Just as the anniversary of the U.S. vaccine rollout arrives, as of Tuesday, the nation surpassed 800,000 COVID-19 related deaths. A year ago, that number stood at 300,000. On the day Americans began to roll up their sleeves, ready to get a jab on Dec. 14, 2020, deaths were averaging 2,500 a day.
Unvaccinated people have a 14-times higher risk of dying compared to fully vaccinated people, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated based on available data from September. Now, as the nation begins to detect omicron variant cases, including in Ohio, officials are urging the public to get vaccinated and get their boosters as soon as possible.
Ohio has detected four cases of the omicron variant. which an analysis of data from South Africa shows the variant appears to cause less severe disease than other strains. Data also shows the variant is better at evading the vaccines, which is why health officials are urging boosters for an extra level of protection.