MADISON, WI (WTAQ) — The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is asking states to get ready to distribute the first wave of COVID-19 vaccinations.
The CDC issued guidance this week telling states to be ready by November 1st for potential vaccine distribution.
Several candidates for the vaccine to the pandemic have been fast-tracked for clinical testing and approval by the Food and Drug Administration.
Wisconsin DHS secretary designee Andrea Palm says Wisconsin has already begun.
“We certainly are beginning that work,” Palm told reporters Thursday. “We are going to have a designated team whose focus will be on our planning and work around vaccine distribution.”
That includes aspects such as prioritizing who gets the vaccine first, where the vaccine is physically distributed and by who, and where the vaccine should be stored.
Bureau of Infection Diseases Dr. Ryan Westergaard says that before anything, they need to make sure the vaccine is safe. Clinical trials are already underway.
“Before when we can recommend that a vaccine be used by Wisconsin residents, we have to have convincing solid evidence that the vaccine is beneficial,” he said. “We rely on our federal agencies to oversee the clinical trials, and communicate the data from those trials, so we can all make a determination of whether we have a product that is effective and safe to use.”
Dr. Westergaard says they won’t reccommend the vaccine until they’re sure it’s safe.
