COVID-19 vaccine discussion

I am looking forward to our nation finally having a vaccination strategy and plan, hopefully nursing homes and rehab hospitals will finish getting all of their residents vaccinated. It seems like there's still a massive supply and distribution issue

36 spots remaining in Wharton TX. 

https://vaccine.heb.com/scheduler

 

 

You can now get a look at the HEB scheduler and vax sites though, even if they don't have any spots left. It looks like HEB is ready to fucking go if the state would ship them doses. Or I guess we can stick with APH and it's awesome platform where the site changes your username and doesn't tell you about it so you get locked out and can't even reset your password. 

7 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

36 spots remaining in Wharton TX. 

https://vaccine.heb.com/scheduler

 

Shit. I was refreshing the news page a few minutes before 9AM. Got past the front page and to the scheduler right at 9AM. That page said no more appointments available.

Bernard

Edited January 21, 2021 by Bernard

Upside is that if HEB Pharmacy in Wharton, Texas has 400 doses, can other locations be far behind? The location list on the scheduler shows lots (150+) locations. I’m happy to drive my mom to any of them if that’s what it takes. 🙂

Bernard

21 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

36 spots remaining in Wharton TX. 

https://vaccine.heb.com/scheduler

 

Buccee’s and Covid vaccine. Let’s goooooo!

1 hour ago, Captainant said:

I am looking forward to our nation finally having a vaccination strategy and plan, hopefully nursing homes and rehab hospitals will finish getting all of their residents vaccinated. It seems like there's still a massive supply and distribution issue

There was always going to be hiccups with distribution.  But the fact we are vaccinating a million people a day basically about a year from when anyone had even heard of this virus is pretty outstanding.

Edited January 21, 2021 by Johnny Sack

59 minutes ago, Captainant said:

I am looking forward to our nation finally having a vaccination strategy and plan, hopefully nursing homes and rehab hospitals will finish getting all of their residents vaccinated. It seems like there's still a massive supply and distribution issue

your savior isn't doing anything different.  the supply is limited by manufacturing and transportation requirements and the state.

6 minutes ago, Johnny Sack said:

There was always going to be hiccups with distribution.  But the fact we are vaccinating a million people basically about a year from when anyone had even heard of this virus is pretty outstanding.

Good point.  A year ago a ton of people were wondering it we'd even be able to make a vaccine at all now or that it would take years now we are bitching about having to wait a few months.  

2 minutes ago, midtown said:

Good point.  A year ago a ton of people were wondering it we'd even be able to make a vaccine at all now or that it would take years now we are bitching about having to wait a few months.  

Yes, and thanks to “Operation Warp Speed”, millions have already been vaccinated well ahead of last year’s original expectations by the healthcare experts.

Hopefully the manufacturers can ramp up production and the more competent local entities are allowed to take over the implementation of the on-site vaccinating.
Of course, not expecting our friends over on the Brazos to get their heads out of their asses and crank up that $200 million facility the feds so generously bestowed on them in the last decade

We should be spending as many billions as it takes to ramp up manufacturing and distribution.

3 minutes ago, NoRagrets said:

We should be spending as many billions as it takes to ramp up manufacturing and distribution.

Agree. It’s doubtful that we wouldn’t get a larger bump on the economy by getting people vaccinated sooner. 

1 hour ago, midtown said:

Good point.  A year ago a ton of people were wondering it we'd even be able to make a vaccine at all now or that it would take years now we are bitching about having to wait a few months.  

The amazing thing is that scientists had a vaccine ready 23 DAYS after the virus' genome was sequenced and made public by China. Testing, approval, and manufacturing consumed most of the timetable.

Bernard

1 hour ago, Armybrat said:

Yes, and thanks to “Operation Warp Speed”, millions have already been vaccinated well ahead of last year’s original expectations by the healthcare experts.

Hopefully the manufacturers can ramp up production and the more competent local entities are allowed to take over the implementation of the on-site vaccinating.
Of course, not expecting our friends over on the Brazos to get their heads out of their asses and crank up that $200 million facility the feds so generously bestowed on them in the last decade

For the record, Moderna received funds from Operation Warp Speed. Pfizer did not. Pfizer got funds from some German vaccine funding mechanism.

Bernard

8 minutes ago, Bernard said:

For the record, Moderna received funds from Operation Warp Speed. Pfizer did not. Pfizer got funds from some German vaccine funding mechanism.

Bernard

 

Correct.

Capitalism saved the day here, not the government. And will continue to do so. These pharmas would have found the money had Germany and the US not given it to them ahead of time. They would have had no problem getting the money from Private Equity or elsewhere.

Edited January 21, 2021 by BradInATX

8 minutes ago, Bernard said:

For the record, Moderna received funds from Operation Warp Speed. Pfizer did not. Pfizer got funds from some German vaccine funding mechanism.

Bernard

Pfizer also got an order for 100 million doses for $2 billion from the US federal government over the summer that no doubt expedited production.

What about the waivers for some of the extended vaccine testing & development rules? Wasn’t that a factor in speeding up the process?

Roomie and I got texts from HEB on Tuesday asking us to reply YES to opt into their texts so that we can schedule our second doses. Hopefully that means they are expecting more doses soon or that they have them in hand for those that got the first through them. We haven’t heard anything else yet. 

2 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

There was always going to be hiccups with distribution.  But the fact we are vaccinating a million people a day basically about a year from when anyone had even heard of this virus is pretty outstanding.

Outstanding is to convert your whole manufacturing base to produce airplanes and shit to win WW2, or to put a man on the moon. This is OK.

2 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

There was always going to be hiccups with distribution.  But the fact we are vaccinating a million people a day basically about a year from when anyone had even heard of this virus is pretty outstanding.

 

2 hours ago, dcar00 said:

your savior isn't doing anything different.  the supply is limited by manufacturing and transportation requirements and the state.

Platitudes aside, if your loved one is unable to be transported to an area that has a handful of shots available, they aren't getting vaccinated yet. And that's a big fucking problem for me personally, especially considering that up until today there has not been major federal or state action to speed it up. 

Maybe it'll be better in two weeks, now that the defense production act has FINALLY been invoked to help speed the acquisition of equipment to store and transport the vaccine, as well as vaccine doses themselves

19 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

What about the waivers for some of the extended vaccine testing & development rules? Wasn’t that a factor in speeding up the process?

Sure. That's fair. And I'll probably leave it there because we're right on the razor's edge of going CR here. 

I think we as a country and planet have done a pretty strong job with the vaccine. From the scientists to the corporations to the governments to the healthcare workers. The rollout could have gone a little bit better, but it looks like most places with a few exceptions (looking at you NYC) have their shit together now.

I recall the ragged rollout of the original Salk polio vaccine. It wasn’t much better.

14 minutes ago, Captainant said:

now that the defense production act has FINALLY been invoked to help speed the acquisition of equipment to store and transport the vaccine,

I've seen where Biden issued a DPA order, but where are you seeing what specific components in the supply chain are being targeted for boosting by the DPA.  I haven't seen a clear explanation. 

2 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

I've seen where Biden issued a DPA order, but where are you seeing what specific components in the supply chain are being targeted for boosting by the DPA.  I haven't seen a clear explanation. 

Mainly this cnbc article, but I would imagine that the mandate on improving the supply chain would have to include the necessary storage/stockpiling equipment. Buildbackbetter.gov also says they plan to spend $25B to improve vaccine manufacturing and distribution, but again nothing specific

4 minutes ago, Captainant said:

Mainly this cnbc article, but I would imagine that the mandate on improving the supply chain would have to include the necessary storage/stockpiling equipment. Buildbackbetter.gov also says they plan to spend $25B to improve vaccine manufacturing and distribution, but again nothing specific

Yeah, I saw that article earlier.  It is non-specific such that it could really mean anything. Other than someone here mentioning a needle shortage, I have not see it clearly articulated what bottlenecks if any there are in the vaccine supply chain that could be addressed via DPA and is not already running at full capacity. 

 

Biden will also use his executive powers to direct agencies to use the Defense Production Act to compel companies to make supplies needed to combat the pandemic. That could include protective equipment like masks as well as supplies needed for Covid-19 tests and to administer vaccines.

Edited January 21, 2021 by Anastasis

4 minutes ago, Captainant said:

Mainly this cnbc article, but I would imagine that the mandate on improving the supply chain would have to include the necessary storage/stockpiling equipment. Buildbackbetter.gov also says they plan to spend $25B to improve vaccine manufacturing and distribution, but again nothing specific

They better not waste any of those funds on aggy.

21 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

I recall the ragged rollout of the original Salk polio vaccine. It wasn’t much better.

Yeah if only we could improve upon 1950s era infrastructure and rollout 

16 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

Yeah, I saw that article earlier.  It is non-specific such that it could really mean anything. Other than someone here mentioning a needle shortage, I have not see it clearly articulated what bottlenecks if any there are in the vaccine supply chain that could be addressed via DPA and is not already running at full capacity. 

 

Biden will also use his executive powers to direct agencies to use the Defense Production Act to compel companies to make supplies needed to combat the pandemic. That could include protective equipment like masks as well as supplies needed for Covid-19 tests and to administer vaccines.

I can’t imagine capex on that scale moves faster in pharma mfg than it does in oil industry. In fact I’d bet money it moves slower.  None of the 25B will improve vaccine mfg in the timeframe that will be beneficial to this outbreak. Edit - unless it’s just to pay OT for people to run mfg that is currently being used (there can’t be any of that sitting around, right?)

Edited January 21, 2021 by UT_OB1

Of course there are no specifics. Other than masks which everyone already has.

34 minutes ago, SubliminalHorn said:

Yeah if only we could improve upon 1950s era infrastructure and rollout 

Well, waiving or modifying some excessive bureaucratic controls mandated by the CDC was a good start.

Or, just turn over the distribution to the Mexican drug cartels.

 

6 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

Or, just turn over the distribution to the Mexican drug cartels.

 

Well, they work mainly on a "flood the system" overload theory, so I'm not sure that works until we have more supply.

9 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

Well, waiving or modifying some excessive bureaucratic controls mandated by the CDC was a good start.

Yeah it was a good start, but we’re coming up on a year into this now. If only there was a plan for the start, middle, and end 

With an organization that has a personnel revolving door spinning out of control? Lol

JNJ will have enough data to do analysis in the next 2-4 weeks with the expectation that if good it will go to the FDA sometime in March.   Per Bloomberg article today. 

40 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

With an organization that has a personnel revolving door spinning out of control? Lol

What organization are you talking about

16 minutes ago, SubliminalHorn said:

What organization are you talking about

The White House of course... the place that supposedly was “in charge” last year.

33 minutes ago, midtown said:

JNJ will have enough data to do analysis in the next 2-4 weeks with the expectation that if good it will go to the FDA sometime in March.   Per Bloomberg article today. 

Damn.  That's about a month later than I'd been led to hope.  I mean, I guess in the grand scheme, a month isn't a big deal, but every damned day that goes by with less as opposed to more vaccines out there is a bad thing.

2 hours ago, XYZ said:

Outstanding is to convert your whole manufacturing base to produce airplanes and shit to win WW2, or to put a man on the moon. This is OK.

It has been approximately 12 months since COVID came to the national attention in the United States and work began on the vaccines.  In the 12 months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States and its allies (namely, the UK) lost to the Japanese the Philippines, Guam, the Aleutian Islands, Wake Island, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaya, the Dutch East Indies, Burma, most of New Guinea, and numerous other island chains in the Pacific.  In the Atlantic, German U-Boats sunk more than 400 Merchant Ships totaling over 2 million tons.  Shortly thereafter, the Afrika Corps routed American forces at the Kasserine Pass in Tunisia in the first major engagement between American and German forces in WW2.

In that same 12 months following Pearl Harbor, the United States produced only about 8,000 Sherman Tanks (out of 50,000 built during the war).  It wasn’t until the second full year of our participation in the war – 1943 – that production really took off, when about 21,000 Shermans were built.

It took two full years from our entry into the war for the P-51 Mustang to be designed, developed, and manufactured in numbers sufficient to allow a long-range fighter escort for the 8th Air Force on its bombing missions deep into Germany.  Up until then, our strategic bombers were being shot out of the sky by German fighters at a rate sometimes as high as 20 or 25% per mission.  It wasn’t until early 1944 that, with the widespread introduction of the Mustang and improved fighter tactics, complete air supremacy was achieved over Western Europe.

It took the US 2 years and 7 months from a declaration of war on Germany to develop the logistics, to assemble enough men, and to construct enough ships and aircraft to land in Normandy in June 1944. 

In 1942, the US produced fewer than 25,000 combat aircraft.  In 1943, it was more than 50,000.  In 1944, it was 75,000.

The backbone of the US Navy during the later half of the war – the Essex Class Carrier – was not produced in large numbers until late 1943 and early 1944, more than 2 years after Pearl Harbor.

The Apollo Program – NASA’s human spaceflight program – took about 8 years from conception to putting Armstrong and Aldrin on the moon.

Massive, unprecedented logistical undertakings do not happen quickly.  Not in WW2.  Not at NASA.  Not with this.  I’d say what private industry, with support from governments, has been able to accomplish – creating, testing, manufacturing, and administering tens of millions of doses of highly effective, revolutionary vaccines to combat a novel coronavirus, in about 12 months - is pretty damn outstanding and holds up well to historical comparison.

38 minutes ago, midtown said:

JNJ will have enough data to do analysis in the next 2-4 weeks with the expectation that if good it will go to the FDA sometime in March.   Per Bloomberg article today. 

That seems significantly later than the previous update I read. Last I read they would be applying for EUA by the end of the month. Very disappointing. 

1 hour ago, Stannis said:

It has been approximately 12 months since COVID came to the national attention in the United States and work began on the vaccines.  In the 12 months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States and its allies (namely, the UK) lost to the Japanese the Philippines, Guam, the Aleutian Islands, Wake Island, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaya, the Dutch East Indies, Burma, most of New Guinea, and numerous other island chains in the Pacific.  In the Atlantic, German U-Boats sunk more than 400 Merchant Ships totaling over 2 million tons.  Shortly thereafter, the Afrika Corps routed American forces at the Kasserine Pass in Tunisia in the first major engagement between American and German forces in WW2.

In that same 12 months following Pearl Harbor, the United States produced only about 8,000 Sherman Tanks (out of 50,000 built during the war).  It wasn’t until the second full year of our participation in the war – 1943 – that production really took off, when about 21,000 Shermans were built.

It took two full years from our entry into the war for the P-51 Mustang to be designed, developed, and manufactured in numbers sufficient to allow a long-range fighter escort for the 8th Air Force on its bombing missions deep into Germany.  Up until then, our strategic bombers were being shot out of the sky by German fighters at a rate sometimes as high as 20 or 25% per mission.  It wasn’t until early 1944 that, with the widespread introduction of the Mustang and improved fighter tactics, complete air supremacy was achieved over Western Europe.

It took the US 2 years and 7 months from a declaration of war on Germany to develop the logistics, to assemble enough men, and to construct enough ships and aircraft to land in Normandy in June 1944. 

In 1942, the US produced fewer than 25,000 combat aircraft.  In 1943, it was more than 50,000.  In 1944, it was 75,000.

The backbone of the US Navy during the later half of the war – the Essex Class Carrier – was not produced in large numbers until late 1943 and early 1944, more than 2 years after Pearl Harbor.

The Apollo Program – NASA’s human spaceflight program – took about 8 years from conception to putting Armstrong and Aldrin on the moon.

Massive, unprecedented logistical undertakings do not happen quickly.  Not in WW2.  Not at NASA.  Not with this.  I’d say what private industry, with support from governments, has been able to accomplish – creating, testing, manufacturing, and administering tens of millions of doses of highly effective, revolutionary vaccines to combat a novel coronavirus, in about 12 months - is pretty damn outstanding and holds up well to historical comparison.

This is hard for any fair minded person to disagree with.  

In 12 months, COVID-19 has killed more Americans than four years of WWII did. Massive and unprecedented logistical undertakings certainly don't happen quickly, but evidence indicates that there was not any sort of logistical undertaking in motion prior to today. 36MM doses have been received by the US so far, and less than half of those are in arms after almost 40 days.

I just don't get all the excuses and handwaving for the months and months of inaction and failure to mobilize and coordinate national resources.

Aransas Pass and Portland up next through HEB portal.  Would love to see what they could do in Travis County. 

 

Aransas Pass clinic: Saturday, January 23 from 8am – 3pm (500 doses) Registration opens at 9 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 22.

Portland clinic: Sunday, January 24 from 8am – 1pm (300 doses) Registration opens at 9 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 22.

Portland clinic: Thursday , January 28 – Saturday, Jan. 30 from 8am – 3pm (200 doses) Registration opens at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 27.

On 1/20/2021 at 3:06 PM, ChuckNorrisActionJeans said:

well shit. My old-ass parents, who live in Collin County got an appt. at Fair Park for Monday. I haven't seen them for more than a year now.

They going to pull the rug out, or is this just for scheduling going forwards? (my dad is old AND super high-risk due to no fault of his own...incurable lung condition with no known origin)

Nope.  Inlaws got shot 1 yesterday.

I pre-registered through APH a week or so ago but haven't heard anything.  i haven't had time to read through last several pages but is consensus that it makes sense to start calling HEB's again and see if they have any and you can get a slot?

 

32 minutes ago, Captainant said:

In 12 months, COVID-19 has killed more Americans than four years of WWII did. Massive and unprecedented logistical undertakings certainly don't happen quickly, but evidence indicates that there was not any sort of logistical undertaking in motion prior to today. 36MM doses have been received by the US so far, and less than half of those are in arms after almost 40 days.

I just don't get all the excuses and handwaving for the months and months of inaction and failure to mobilize and coordinate national resources.

quit spouting CNN bullshit.

1 minute ago, dcar00 said:

quit spouting CNN bullshit.

Winner winner chicken dinner.

27 minutes ago, Gale Snoats said:

I pre-registered through APH a week or so ago but haven't heard anything.  i haven't had time to read through last several pages but is consensus that it makes sense to start calling HEB's again and see if they have any and you can get a slot?

 

how old are you?

when you registered did you say you had insurance?  

if under 65 and you said yes you might as well call HEB and check the dashboard that shows other types of locations that have some.

if over 65 but have insurance you might call APH, if you can.

13 minutes ago, dcar00 said:

quit spouting CNN bullshit.

So wait, we're doing great with vaccine distribution?? I'll let my dad's nursing home know so they can vaccinate him! And I'll likewise let my grandfather know so he can get his first dose too. It's so great to learn that we have in fact been working on coordinated vaccine distribution since they got approved! It's been soooooooooooo much fun calling his care facility every day and hearing that they have no idea when he'll get his, I'll miss it so.

Unless I misunderstand you, and it's just that you're attacking me because I say facts you dislike and/or are offensive to your otherwise delicate sensibilities.