Cape Cod Hospitals Get More Than 2,900 Coronavirus Vaccine Doses

HYANNIS, MA — Officials at Cape Cod Healthcare announced Tuesday they received their first shipment of the coronavirus vaccine, as front-line workers across the country become among the first Americans to receive the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

CEO Michael Lauf said Cape Cod Hospital and Falmouth Hospital received a combined 2,920 doses Monday. On Monday, a New York nurse became the first U.S. front-line worker to receive the vaccine.

The first frontline workers on Cape Cod were scheduled to receive the vaccine at 3:30 p.m., Tuesday. Thirty employees at Cape Cod Hospital and 20 at Falmouth Hospital were part of that initial trial run. Lauf said the mass immunization plan begins at 5 a.m., Tuesday, and he hopes to have all the vaccines administered to frontline workers by Christmas.

"It provides a ray of light and hope for our frontline caregivers who have been battling this disease for upwards of 10 months," Lauf said.

The hospital will continue with vaccinations in accordance with state guidelines as more doses are made available, Lauf said. There wasn't word on when the hospitals are expected to receive their next shipment.

The first employees to get the vaccine will be nurses, doctors, dietary workers and other employees working in close contact with COVID-19. Lauf said he hopes this can be the first step that "brings herd immunity to our community and brings us back in living our normal lives."

"It’s an exciting day, but a sobering one," Lauf said recognizing the 302,000 people in the U.S. that died after contracting the virus.

Lauf said the vaccination isn't mandatory for Cape Cod Healthcare employees.

According to Lauf, a few employees do not want the vaccine, but most want it. Some don't want to be among the first to get it, and others want it right away and trust the science, Lauf said.

The vaccinations are part of initial U.S. distribution, which will continue into 2021 and will eventually be used to treat the public.

Those who receive the vaccine must be monitored for 15 minutes to monitor any allergic reactions, which is why many hospitals are limiting the vaccinations to about 100 per hour.