Cooper: 175,000 doses of Moderna vaccine coming to N.C. next week if authorized by FDA

RALEIGH, N.C. (WECT) - If it’s authorized by the FDA, 175,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine will be coming to North Carolina next week, Gov. Roy Cooper said Tuesday.

On Monday, North Carolina began receiving the first shipments of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine as the largest vaccination campaign in US history kicked off.

The first limited supplies of the vaccines will be administered to health care workers carrying for COVID-19 patients as well as staff and residents at long-term care facilities.

But after this initial delivery of the vaccine, Cooper said there remain questions on how many doses the state can expect in ensuing weeks.

“North Carolina and every other state still need clarity from the federal government as to how many doses of the Pfizer vaccine we will receive going forward,” Cooper said. “We’ve been told that each Friday, we’ll get information about the following week’s shipment, giving the states just a few hours to direct where these shipments will go.

“Yesterday, I raised this issue with Vice President Mike Pence on a call with other governors. I asked for more time to plan, which is critical as our vaccines roll out across the state and they said they will work on it.”

According to Cooper, each Friday morning state leaders will find out from the federal government how many doses it will get.

“The key is we’re supposed to have by 8 p.m. that evening exactly where we want them to ship those doses,” he said. “So logistically knowing that number earlier can help the team plan better. They said they would work on that.”

As of Tuesday, 2,735 people are being hospitalized in N.C. due to COVID-19 and 5,881 have died.

“Our numbers are still too high, and the vaccine can’t yet have a significant effect,” Cooper said. “We must get these trends turned around. Seeing vaccinations underway gives us hope at the end of a hard year. But this virus continues to be extremely contagious and deadly.”

The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services will offer more than 300 no-cost, walk-up or drive-through COVID-19 testing events over the next two weeks.

A full list of all testing event times and locations throughout the state can be found here. More locations are being added each day, and additional testing sites can be found here.

“Anyone can get tested for COVID-19 at these events,” a news release from the NCDHHS said. “People without insurance are eligible for testing, and identification documents are not required. Children and adults may be tested, but a parent or legal guardian must be present with children and teens 17 or younger.”