Lahey Hospital To Receive COVID-19 Vaccine Tuesday Or Wednesday

BURLINGTON MA, MA — Officials at Lahey Hospital and Medical Center expect to receive their first shipment of the coronavirus vaccine Tuesday and Wednesday as front-line workers across the country become among the first Americans to receive the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

A Beth Israel Lahey Health official said Monday that the hospital will receive the vaccine within a day or two. The delivery comes after a New York nurse became the first U.S. front-line worker to receive the vaccine Monday.

"A multi-disciplinary BILH Vaccine Command Team has developed a highly coordinated, systematic plan and a consistent set of criteria for administrating the vaccine to our staff and ultimately, our patients over the next several months," Chief Medical Officer Richard Nesto said.

Vaccinations will begin on Wednesday.

"Based on guidance we received from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, we are prioritizing administration of the vaccine to patient-facing clinicians and staff who are at the greatest risk of exposure to patients with COVID-19 based on their work location and the patients they support," Nesto 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.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.