UT Health San Antonio was one of only four sites in Texas to receive the first doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine Monday.

The university received nearly 6,000 doses of the vaccine, which gained emergency use authorization Dec. 10 from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. They will be administered to front-line health care workers starting Tuesday, Dec. 15. Nearly 1,000 front-liners are expected to be vaccinated each day while supplies last.

The vaccine regimen consists of two doses administered 21 days apart. Health care workers at UT Health San Antonio will receive their first dose over the next several days, and the second dose over several days in January, with the goal of completing vaccinations for front-liners by mid-January.

Because of a limited supply, the university’s COVID-19 Vaccine Assessment and Access Task Force has prioritized who will receive the vaccine based on recommendations by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a subgroup of the CDC.

The first priority will be given to 5,100 health care workers, including 1,300 people who work with COVID-19-positive patients daily and 900 essential workers, emergency responders and others who support the university’s infrastructure. Employees with multiple underlying serious health conditions at risk for severe COVID disease and personnel and patients of UT Health San Antonio with one serious health condition will follow.

The vaccines are being administered in the School of Nursing through a large, collaborative process including hundreds of people across the university. The School of Nursing’s Wellness 360, in conjunction with the Department of Pathology in the Long School of Medicine, also continues to offer COVID-19 testing to faculty, staff and students. Wellness 360 will be closed Tuesday for routine health care visits.

To learn more, watch this webinar about COVID-19 vaccine distribution that features UT Health San Antonio leaders and experts and answers:

• Who should get the vaccine and when.
• Prioritized vaccine distribution recommendations.
• Vaccine distribution schedule for our organization.
• Distribution logistics (where, when, how to register).
• Availability of COVID-19 testing.

FAQS about the vaccine are available on the COVID-19 website and more are being added as received. Email any questions to COVID-19@uthscsa.edu.