Health care workers in Topeka received COVID-19 vaccine shots on Wednesday as the vaccine continues to be distributed to health care facilities.  Hospital workers in Wichita began getting the shots Monday and Tuesday.

Governor Kelly said health care workers are getting the first shots this week, and the vaccine is expected to be administered next week to staff and residents of long-term care facilities.

The governor said the vaccine is expected to be available during the winter on a very limited basis to health care and long-term care workers and EMS public health workers. The vaccine will become available in late winter to first responders, some public agency workers in essential and critical infrastructure, teachers, school staff, child care workers and people at high risk for adverse health consequences.

The vaccine will become available in the spring for all other adults and it will be generally available in the summer for all Kansans, including children.

Governor Kelly said the state received the first shipment of Pfizer vaccine this week, for about 24,000 doses.   Moderna is expected to provide around 49,000 doses next week.  each person will get two doses of the vaccine, and Dr. Lee Norman with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment said the Pfizer vaccine required 21 days between doses.  The Moderna vaccine will require at least 28 days between doses.

By the Associated Press:

COVID-19 deaths have surged in Kansas in the past week and nearly every part of the state has lost people to the disease caused by the coronavirus, health statistics show.

Kansas averaged a record 45 new reported COVID-19 deaths per day for the seven days that ended Wednesday, according to state Department of Health and Environment data.

The department reported 144 new deaths since Monday, pushing the state’s pandemic death toll to 2,253.