[Goose]

According to Gen. Perna, the Pfizer vaccine only has a 20 day shelf life (at least, that's how long after they deliver it) and requires 21 days between doses.  As the first distribution day will be on or after Dec. 11, no second doses to patients will be given in December.    (The Moderna vaccine has 28 days between doses and starts shipping Dec. 18 at the earliest.)

The actual situation is this:

Right now, Pfizer says its vaccine needs to be kept at minus 70 degrees Celsius and can last in a specialty freezer for up to six months. The specialty shippers can hold up to five "pizza box" trays of vials and be refreshed with dry ice every five days for up to 15 days to keep the vaccine at the right frozen temperature.

I would assume the deliveries to places like UCSF would be stored in a "specialty freezer" capable of maintaining them for six months. If not, why not? It wouldn't be hard for 10 places in the State to have such freezers. I suspect they already do. Each individual hospital or pharmacy in the state, no, but big research centers, yes.

[Goose]

According to Gen. Perna, the Pfizer vaccine only has a 20 day shelf life (at least, that's how long after they deliver it) and requires 21 days between doses.  As the first distribution day will be on or after Dec. 11, no second doses to patients will be given in December.    (The Moderna vaccine has 28 days between doses and starts shipping Dec. 18 at the earliest.)

The actual situation is this:

Right now, Pfizer says its vaccine needs to be kept at minus 70 degrees Celsius and can last in a specialty freezer for up to six months. The specialty shippers can hold up to five "pizza box" trays of vials and be refreshed with dry ice every five days for up to 15 days to keep the vaccine at the right frozen temperature.

I would assume the deliveries to places like UCSF would be stored in a "specialty freezer" capable of maintaining them for six months. If not, why not? It wouldn't be hard for 10 places in the State to have such freezers. I suspect they already do. Each individual hospital or pharmacy in the state, no, but big research centers, yes.