On Monday, with a critical care nurse here being the first person in the US to be vaccinated for COVID-19, the biggest vaccination campaign in American history started, offering a glimmer of hope as the country nears the grim milestone of nearly 300,000 deaths from coronavirus.
The shot produced by Pfizer and its German affiliate BioNTech, at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens Monday, was administered to Frontline nurse Sandra Lindsay.
Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York State said the pandemic was terrible.
It was a modern-day battlefield, which is why the term 'heroes' is so valued for what you've done. The vaccine is the tool that will bring the war to an end. It is the beginning of Cuomo's last chapter of the novel, just before the vaccination was given to Lindsay.
As he watched Lindsay take the vaccine shot, Cuomo clapped. She feels optimistic and relieved, Lindsay says, and healing is coming.
I hope this marks the start of a very traumatic era in our history, she said, adding that she wants to instill public trust that the vaccine is healthy.
She emphasized that while at the end of the tunnel there is light, individuals do need to continue wearing their masks, maintain social distance, and urge others to take the vaccine.
On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the emergency approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine as the death toll in the US is close to 300,000.
On Sunday, the first trucks carrying the COVID-19 vaccine for widespread use in the United States pulled out of a Pfitzer production plant in Michigan, en route to 636 predetermined locations, in the midst of a botched government response that has made the United States the world's worst-hit region.
With the winter holidays still ahead, experts warn that the pandemic could continue to get worse before the larger public receives the vaccination.
Dr. Moncef Slaoui, the chief adviser of Operation Warp Pace, said they intend to have approximately 14 million doses of vaccine available and distributed in the US by the end of this year. Plans for the immunization of 100 million citizens by February are on a war footing.
About who is vaccinated and when state and local authorities make their own decisions. It has been proposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that frontline health care staff and long-term care facility residents get the vaccine first.
First doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are also provided by Canada.
On Monday, Canada distributed the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Among the first Canadians to receive the vaccine at one of Toronto's hospitals were five front-line staff in Ontario.
The first dose was received in Ontario by Anita Quidangen, a personal support worker who worked at the Rekai Centre nursing home in Toronto during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Dr. Kevin Smith, president, and CEO of the University Health Network of Toronto said today is a day of triumph for science. We're cracking the back of this terrible virus right here now.
It is estimated that more of Canada's initial 30,000 doses of the vaccine will cross the border on Monday. His contract with Pfizer and BioNTech was recently amended by the Canadian government to supply up to 249,000 doses this month.
"It was very emotional for me," said Federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu, who witnessed the first vaccination in Quebec.
Hajdu noted that Canadians would continue to defend each other.
The first move is. We have a great deal of work ahead of us. These are rough times,' she said.
Last week, Canada's health regulator approved the vaccine for use.
Canada has contracts with six other manufacturers of vaccines and is actively evaluating three other vaccines, including one by Moderna that could be accepted soon by Canadian health officials.
People are now beginning to receive coronavirus vaccines in Britain and the United States.
As the coronavirus continues to surge through most of the globe, promising findings arrive.
