Dr. Dobbs: Mississippi could see first COVID-19 vaccines ‘next week’

Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs says the Magnolia State could see its first batch of COVID-19 vaccines as early as next week.

In a Tweet Monday, Dobbs said the Food and Drug Administration is meeting Thursday to review Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine. If, as expected, the FD gives its approval for emergency use of the vaccine, distribution will begin almost immediately.

FDA meets Thursday to review Pfizer COVID vaccine (and full data available for review thereafter).

We hope to have ~25k doses for front-line healthcare by next week.https://t.co/HT1Vd4D4PB

— thomas dobbs (@TCBPubHealth) December 7, 2020

Dobbs indicated that the first doses of the vaccine will go to frontline health-care workers.

In a separate tweet, Dobbs said he was excited to follow Great Britain’s lead in vaccines. The U.K. gave its go ahead for the Pfizer vaccine last week, and has begun the process of vaccinating its residents. Like the U.S., the U.K. is starting its vaccination campaign with health-care workers and the elderly, who are most at risk of contracting and dying from the virus.

Worldwide, some 68 million cases of COVID-19 have been reported this year, and 1.5 million people have died.