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1 more tests positive for COVID-19
No clear vaccination date for the public
Even as one person tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday, Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. chief executive officer Esther Muña stated that there is still no clear date as to when the rest of the public will get vaccinated.
CHCC announced that one individual was confirmed positive for COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the CNMI’s total to 133. CHCC stated that the individual was identified by travel screening and confirmed diagnosis through testing upon arrival.
The individual has been safely in quarantine and was moved to the designated isolation area, the Kanoa Resort Alternative Care Site in Susupe, for monitoring. CHCC has already initiated contact tracing for the most immediate contacts of the new confirmed case, including passengers on the same flight.
In a text message interview with Muña, she said the CNMI is expecting a delivery of 11,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses on Feb. 4: a total of 7,800 Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines and 3,200 Moderna Inc. vaccines.
This will bring the total doses of the Pfizer vaccine to 21,450, according to the e-newsletter of Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan (Ind-MP). Each individual needs two doses, 21 days apart, for maximum effectiveness.
The CNMI’s February allocation of the Moderna vaccine is 33% more than January’s allocation, for a total of 8,200 doses, the e-newsletter stated. Moderna, too, requires two injections for full effect.
The Moderna vaccine increase comes after the Biden administration announced plans to purchase an additional 100 million doses of both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccine, increasing the total vaccine order for the United States from 400 million to 600 million doses.
Muña said the new shipments will help CHCC expand vaccinations to more groups on all three islands. When asked when will the public get vaccinated, she said it is unclear how many vaccinations the CNMI will actually get.
COVID-19 in Guam
Guam’s Department of Public Health and Social Services placed an order for 17,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines last Jan. 30 for the February allocation.
According to the Joint Information Center in Guam, DPHSS placed orders for both the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines. DPHSS’ Immunization Program ordered 9,200 doses of the Moderna vaccine and 7,800 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine totaling 17,000 doses for February. JIC stated that both vaccines are anticipated to arrive within three to five business days.
According to JIC, a total of 28,183 residents have been vaccinated with either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. For the first dose, a total of 21,327 individuals, 2nd dose, 6,856 individuals, and 6,856 have been fully immunized.
