Michigan getting more COVID-19 vaccine doses next week than expected

Michigan's allotment of COVID-19 vaccine for next week will be nearly twice what was expected after the federal government informed state health officials late Wednesday that it will release an additional 60,000 doses, health officials said.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services learned on Tuesday that the state would receive 62,400 doses of the Pfizer vaccine for next week — a number that fell far short of what health providers have asked for.

MDHHS informed the Detroit News on Wednesday that it would not be receiving any of the Moderna vaccine for the rest of the month. About 300,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine was being held in reserve for Walgreens and CVS pharmacies to administer in nursing homes through the Federal Long Term Care Program.  

But state officials were notified late Wednesday that Michigan could withdraw doses of the Moderna vaccine from the long term care "bank" immediately, and take fewer doses during future allocations, MDHHS spokeswoman Lynn Sutfin said. 

"This is based on the amount of vaccine that has been ordered by CVS and Walgreens and the number of clinics they have scheduled for this coming week," Sutfin explained. "This means an additional 60,000 doses will be sent to providers this coming week."

The unexpected windfall brings to 122,400 the number of COVID-19 vaccine doses the state will have to distribute to hospitals and health departments next week. 

"We are currently working on the orders which we plan to place tomorrow," Sutfin said when asked when hospitals and health departments will find out how many of next week's doses they can expect. "States learn about their allocations and place their orders on Fridays."

CVS and Walgreens have administered 52,744 vaccine doses to residents and staff at long-term care facilities so far, according to the most recent data from MDHHS. 

Michigan, like states across the nation, has been criticized for getting far fewer "shots in arms" than the number of doses they've received from the federal government. An estimated 2,576,000 Michiganians are currently considered eligible for the vaccine.

As of Thursday, 831,150 doses of vaccine have been shipped to Michigan. Of those, 368,844, or about 44%, have been injected into people.  

The state health department and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have been criticized for opening vaccinations to people age 65 and older when only about a fifth of vaccine doses had been dispensed. But state health officials say the intent is to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible.

"MDHHS is committed to accelerating vaccine delivery as we work to reach our goal of vaccinating 70% of Michiganders over age 16 as quickly as possible with the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine," Sutfin said Thursday. 

Doses of vaccine are shipped directly from the manufacturers or distributors to vaccine providers across the state, Sutfin noted. No doses have been shipped to MDHHS. All of the doses the federal government lists as having been distributed, or shipped to Michigan, have been sent either to one of Michigan's 1,218 registered vaccine providers, or "banked" for ordering by CVS and Walgreens to administer in long-term care facilities.    

"At this time, 241,500 doses have been transferred into that bank... with 300,000 doses total planned for that program," Sutfin said. "Those doses are not sent to MDHHS. They are shipped directly to CVS and Walgreens from the manufacturer based on the doses they need for the clinics scheduled that week." 

According to Sutfin, there are also lags in reporting that make it appear that fewer shots have been given than actually have been administered. Some doses listed as distributed may still be in transit, she said. Hospitals and health departments have 24 hours to report they've received a shipment of vaccine, and Walgreens and CVS have 72 hours to report they received their vaccine. 

She said the health department is working with CVS and Walgreens to speed up reporting and has started posting the pharmacies' number on the state's vaccine dashboard.

"We recognize that there is not enough vaccine for every currently eligible individual with the limited supplies we have and vaccine providers are not able to get all the vaccine they have requested," Sutfin said. "This is why we have asked the federal government to give the State of Michigan more vaccines."

kbouffard@detroitnews.com

Twitter:@kbouffardDN