Snowy and icy weather across much of the nation has “significantly” delayed shipments of COVID-19 vaccine to Georgia, state health officials said Wednesday.
Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines that normally would have arrived the first part of this week were held back by the manufacturers due to the winter weather, the Georgia Department of Public Health said in a statement.
As a result, health departments and other vaccine providers have been forced to reschedule appointments, the agency said. When those shots can be administered will depend on when vaccine shipments resume and when they arrive in Georgia, health officials said.
Delays are expected to continue through the week, officials said.
Melissa Frank, Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s director of pharmacy, said the hospital received its Pfizer vaccine shipment Monday morning but would not receive the Moderna shipment this week.
“Thankfully, we don’t anticipate the delays will interfere with any existing appointments at this point,” Frank said. “Like other local providers, we’re still anxious to get our hands on as many doses as possible so we can quickly vaccinate more people in our community.”
District 2 Public Health spokesman Dave Palmer said they were expecting to receive their Tuesday shipment on Thursday, Feb. 18.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.