Tarrant Public Health did not receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Here’s where it went
Tarrant County Public Health and its partners did not get any of the more than 200,000 one-dose Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccines that Texas received.
State officials did not allocate the new vaccine to Public Health because the county is regularly receiving Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, a Texas State Health Services spokesperson said. Officials also did not want to allocate the new vaccine and then reduce allocation because future federal allocation is uncertain.
Tarrant County Public Health received 10,000 of the Moderna vaccine and none of the Pfizer for distribution this week. Texas Health Resources, the county’s partner, received 4,680 of the Pfizer.
This allocation represents a reduction of 11,000 doses. Arlington Fire received no doses and Texas Health’s allocation was cut in half. Arlington Fire officials told state officials not to allocate any first doses to the county hub at ESports Stadium because they are working with the federally funded site at Globe Life Field and AT&T Stadium.
In recent weeks, Public Health and its partners have received 25,750 doses — 7,000 for the Arlington Fire Department, 9,000 for Tarrant County Public Health and 9,750 for Texas Health Resources. This week, they have 14,680 combined. The state reduced allocations because of the federal site.
The federally funded vaccination site in Arlington received 6,500 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and 21,060 of the Pfizer vaccine. At least more than half of the Johnson & Johnson doses will go to Arlington school district teachers, substitutes and part-time staff.
In Tarrant County, pharmacies, clinics, universities and hospitals are also receiving the new vaccine. It’s mostly a low allocation as most of these providers aren’t receiving more than 100 doses. The most being given is 500 doses.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine can be good for those who are home bound, homeless or live in rural areas. The new vaccine can be put in regular refrigeration unlike Pfizer’s, which must be stored at below-freezing temperatures.
