Florida to receive more Pfizer, Moderna vaccines next week
LAKE MARY, Fla. - While Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccines are on hold across the state, FOX 35 News has learned that Florida will receive more doses of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines next week.
Seminole County’s supply of Johnson & Johnson vaccines is in storage and clearly labeled "do not use."
"They’re still packaged," Seminole County Emergency Manager Alan Harris said. "They’re still ready to go. As soon as they’re given the green light we’ll continue that. We anticipate that we probably will get the green light.’
There will be no shipments of the J&J vaccine to Florida next week, but the state is set to get about 550,000 doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines next week. That’s about 40,000 additional doses than last week.
This is good news to counties in our area that are swapping their J&J doses for other vaccines.
Seminole County has received about 3,500 J&J vaccines since they’ve been available. They have about 540 still left. They were using them for their homebound patients. Now, they’re switching those J&J doses with Moderna.
"It does create a little additional work for us because we have to go back in 28 days, but people still get their vaccines," Harris said.
The J&J doses Orange County’s health department uses will be swapped with Pfizer for now.
Osceola County said it had several mobile vaccination events planned this week with the state and the federal government using the J&J vaccine, they’ve been put on hold, too.
The state-run vaccination site at Valencia College West is still only doing second doses of the Pfizer vaccine. It was doing up to 3,000 doses of the J&J vaccine.
TRENDING: 'It's trying to attack the Swiffer!': Florida women find baby gator in home
It was quieter at the vaccination site on Wednesday.
The state tells FOX 35 News all of its Johnson and Johnson vaccines are being refrigerated at local county health departments until they get direction on what the next steps will be.
The state said it is looking at ways to be able to give out first doses again, but everything is uncertain right now.
"The site is state-run," FEMA Media Relations Liaison CJ Prudhom said. "So, we’re still waiting for the state to figure out what is really going on because it’s all new to everybody. So, we’re all just waiting for information."
Tune in to FOX 35 Orlando for the latest Central Florida news.