Distributing COVID-19 vaccine will be biggest health operation in L.A. history and county officials are expressing concerns

This May 4, 2020, file photo provided by the University of Maryland School of Medicine, shows the first patient enrolled in Pfizer’s COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine clinical trial at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. (Courtesy of University of Maryland School of Medicine via AP, File)

by: Los Angeles Times

Posted: Nov 20, 2020 / 07:29 AM PST

Updated: Nov 20, 2020 / 07:29 AM PST

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The scientists have designed the vaccine. Now, government bureaucrats must figure out how to quickly and fairly distribute the life-saving COVID-19 medication.

For Los Angeles County, this effort has already included acquiring 16 ultra-cold storage freezers to be installed across the region. They can store tens of thousands of doses at temperatures as low as minus 86 degrees Celsius.

But the bigger question involves where the vaccine will go from there. It’s shaping up to be the largest and most complex public health effort in the county’s history, and concerns are growing that officials are falling behind. The county has already struggled with another essential element of the pandemic response: providing widescale coronavirus testing.

Distributing the vaccine in a safe and equitable manner is an even more vital task, and some officials have already expressed their concerns.

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