Dalton (GA) – The North Georgia Health District announced that Whitfield County Health Department received an initial shipment of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and began administrating the vaccine to healthcare workers from a variety of medical offices on Friday.

Dr. Pablo Perez, an interninst in Dalton, was one of the first to receive a COVID-19  vaccination for healthcare workers in North Georgia. Robin Coffey, a registered nurse at the Whitfield County Health Deparment, administered the vaccination.

This first shipment of Pfizer vaccine contained 1,950 doses and is being kept in an ultracold freezer required for storage and temperature control of the vaccine.

Moderna vaccine should begin arriving in Georgia next week and will be distributed to health departments for administration to healthcare workers in Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield counties.

Both Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine require the administration of two doses to be fully effective.

Because initial COVID-19 vaccine supplies are limited, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) at the state and local level is following the recommendations of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) by prioritizing the vaccine for healthcare personnel and residents of long-term care facilities. The North Georgia Health District will also make vaccine available to local hospitals as those facilities await their own deliveries.

Additional information about distribution and administration of vaccine in North Georgia will be coming soon.

COVID-19 vaccine information in Georgia is available on the DPH website at https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-vaccine.

LEARN MORE ABOUT FREE COVID-19 TESTING IN NORTH GEORGIA HERE.