California adds sites but short on shots

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California is adding mass inoculation sites even as the shortage of coronavirus vaccine has local officials restricting who gets shots, with Los Angeles County saying it will limit new vaccinations to ensure second doses are available to those already in line for them.

Santa Clara County and the San Francisco 49ers said Friday that they will open California’s largest vaccination site at Levi’s Stadium early next week. It eventually will be capable of injecting up to 15,000 people a day.

In California, the problem isn’t vaccination capacity, it’s limited vaccine supply that is forcing rationing. For example, while the state has said anyone 65 or older can get vaccinated, until Friday, Southern California’s Riverside County was serving only people 80 and older at the sites it operates.

In Los Angeles County, home to 10 million residents, starting Tuesday the five mass vaccination sites it runs will give only second doses.

“We’re just struggling with the supply, the limited supply, and feeling an obligation to make sure that people who have had a first dose are able to get their second dose,” Dr. Paul Simon, the county’s chief science officer, said during a briefing.

The county’s five so-called mega-pods are among more than 360 vaccination sites countywide, including ones run by Los Angeles, pharmacies and clinics. The county has administered more than 1 million doses so far, Simon said. More than 846,000 were first doses.

In the San Francisco Bay area, Napa County stopped giving first doses to preserve its remaining supply for those ready for second shots. Pfizer and Moderna each say two shots are required for their vaccines to be most effective.

Napa County Supervisor Alfredo Pedroza said officials are now having to “manage the expectations” of the 27,000 people who took the first dose and another 46,000 who have made appointments and are waiting to get the first shot.

“We’re getting a lot of the questions from community members asking, ‘Is my second dose in jeopardy?’ And right now, we don’t have an answer,” Pedroza said.

Some 4.2 million shots have been administered in California. State health officials could not immediately say how many of those were second shots.

They hope to soon be better able to track the inoculations as the state’s MyTurn online reservation site becomes widely used and as the state turns to insurance giant Blue Shield to run a new, centralized vaccine distribution system.

The state’s worst coronavirus surge continues to abate as new cases fall sharply. The daily average now is about 14,500 cases, down almost 50% from two weeks ago.

Deaths also are starting to fall but remain exceptionally high. Another 558 were announced Friday, and in the past week almost 3,500 have died.