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'That impacts us greatly;' Winter weather could mean vaccine delays for Central Georgia

The Georgia Department of Public Health says both Pfizer and Moderna vaccine shipments are delayed this week.

HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — As the winter weather continues across the country, vaccine shipments are being delayed.

We could see that impact us here in Central Georgia.

Michael Hokanson with the North Central Health District says people with vaccine appointments next week could receive a call asking them to reschedule.

The Georgia Department of Public Health says both Pfizer and Moderna vaccine shipments are delayed this week.

"That definitely will have an impact on vaccination opportunities," says Hokanson.

He says they receive a shipment every week, although the number of doses vary.

Their last shipment came in last week, but this week's hasn't made it yet.

"It's one of those little operational aspects of it that are completely out of our hands that impacts us greatly when there is a snag in the particular pipeline from point A to point B," he says. "A lot of what we are having to do is dependent on outside factors and, of course, weather being one that nobody can control."

He says people with appointments through the health district should be OK this week, but that may be a different story next week.

"Right now, we have yet to have to reschedule any appointments, but, of course, that is entirely possible."

Over at Houston Healthcare, they've already had to make some changes due to their limited supply of Pfizer vaccine.

"We have had to reschedule some people who were scheduled for second shots and also a few first time shots," says Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dan Stewart.

He says he hates to see any delays after the progress they've already made.

"We are beginning to make some impact in our community here for Houston County and the surrounding middle Georgia area, so that's a good thing. It's just, I wish it was a little bit faster."

If your appointment needs to be rescheduled, Houston Healthcare or your health department will call to let you know. If you don't hear from them, they say you should still show up for your appointment.

As we've verified before, the CDC says your second dose of the vaccine does not have to come exactly 21 or 28 days after your first dose. That's just the minimum time frame.

"You have between four and six weeks. That's the sweet spot for that second dose to give you that full effectiveness," says Hokanson.

Stewart agrees.

"You gotta remember, our T lymphocytes and our B lymphocytes are not going to say, 'Oops, it's day 22 and we can't respond anymore to the vaccine because it's not day 21,'" he says. "I guarantee you our body will respond to the vaccine even if there is a little bit of a delay."

So far, Houston Healthcare has administered 8,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine, while the North Central Health District has given over 24,000 of the Moderna vaccine.

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