Updated 02/26/21
Patient and Community Vaccine Administration Update
Torrance Memorial is receiving a limited supply of vaccine and will hold
1st dose clinics as vaccines become available. Please call our COVID-19
Vaccine Hotline at 310-784-6824 to hear a recorded message on vaccine
availability.
We are not pre-registering nor have a waiting list for future clinics.
Meanwhile, during this challenging time, our offices are going above and
beyond to care for their patients. We are asking everyone to help by not
calling them with questions about the vaccine.
More public sites are opening throughout the South Bay. Visit the
LA County Department of Public Health website for available community clinics.
For the most up-to-date information on Los Angeles County vaccine distribution
plans and to sign up to receive Public Health COVID-19 Vaccine email alerts,
click here. The LACDPH website is the best source to find latest updates on when
the vaccine will be available to more people.
Because our clinics will be limited in the number of vaccines we can deliver,
we encourage you to visit
LACDPH website to find alternative vaccine clinics near you.
The coming days and weeks will require patience from us all as we navigate
this quickly evolving situation. Torrance Memorial is committed to keeping
you informed and will update you with the latest information as it becomes
available.
COVID-19 Vaccine Update with Dr. Zachary Gray
Torrance Memorial emergency physician, Dr. Zachary Gray, answers COVID-19
vaccine frequently asked questions.
Vaccine Development: Normal Process vs. Operation Warp Speed
The vaccine development process follows a standard set of steps to ensure
vaccines are safe and effective. For the COVID-19 vaccine under Operation
Warp Speed, no steps were skipped, but they were accelerated to get a
vaccine to market more quickly. These steps include:
Step 1: Obtaining Funding
Normal Process:
Pharmaceutical companies that wish to develop a new vaccine need to find
a way to pay for the project. Often this involves applying for research
grants from HHS and other government agencies. The application process
can take years.
Operation Warp Speed:
For the COVID-19 vaccine, funding was made available by the federal government
— no grant applications were required.
Step 2: Preclinical Trials
Normal Process:
Pharmaceutical companies hoping to develop a new vaccine need to find a
way to pay for the project. Often, this involves applying for research
grants from HHS and other government agencies. The application process
can take years.
Operation Warp Speed:
Previous research into other coronaviruses gave vaccine developers information
they could use to create a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine, streamlining
the preclinical research process.
Step 3: Phase I Clinical Trials
Normal Process:
Phase I clinical trials are conducted with only a few dozen human volunteers
to assess short-term safety and side effects, such as soreness at the
injection site and fever with different vaccine doses.
Step 4: Phase II Clinical Trials
Normal Process:
Phase II clinical trials assess safety and measure immune responses caused
by the vaccine in a larger group of volunteers.
Step 5: Phase III Clinical Trials
Normal Process:
Phase III clinical trials assess whether the vaccine is safe and effective
compared to a placebo and often include thousands of volunteers.
Step 3-5: Phase I, II, and III Clinical Trials
Operation Warp Speed:
All steps of the clinical trial process were completed when developing
the COVID-19 vaccine. However, some steps were combined — such as
Phase I and Phase II, or Phase II and Phase III — to expedite the
process. Phase III clinical trials were also completed more quickly in
the midst of a pandemic because it was easier to measure the effectiveness
when compared to a placebo.
Step 6: Regulatory Approval
Normal Process:
After the Phase III clinical trial is complete, the vaccine manufacturer
must submit a Biologics License Application providing data on safety,
immune responses and effectiveness. The FDA reviews data to determine
whether the vaccine should be approved.
Operation Warp Speed:
If scientific evidence suggests a vaccine may be safe and effective, the
FDA may authorize vaccine use through an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA).
Step 7: Preparing for Manufacturing
Normal Process:
After Phase III clinical trials are complete, vaccine manufacturers begin
ramping up their ability to produce a large number of vaccine doses. The
FDA also conducts periodic inspections of manufacturing facilities.
Operation Warp Speed:
The U.S. government and other stakeholders took steps to ramp up manufacturing
capacity before the findings from Phase III trials were available. Two
vaccine candidates use messenger RNA (mRNA) instead of live or inactive
viruses. Vaccines using mRNA are easier to manufacture than live or inactivated
vaccines because they do not require handling large quantities of the virus.
Step 8: Distribution and Rollout
Normal Process:
After manufacturing capacity is established, vaccine manufacturers make
plans to distribute the vaccine to private partners and state health departments,
who distribute doses to local health care providers. Part of this step
involves ensuring proper shipping and storage methods are used to preserve
the vaccine. The FDA also issues guidelines for who should receive the
vaccine and how it should be administered.
Operation Warp Speed:
The U.S. government created a coalition of experts from the Department
of Defense, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Health
and Human Services to work with private partners and state health departments
to expedite vaccine distribution, as well as guidelines for its administration.
Manufacturers are working closely with distribution partners to ensure
vaccines can be stored and transported under proper conditions (particularly
the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine which requires ultra-cold storage).
The government has also issued a phased rollout plan which prioritizes
distribution to vulnerable individuals..
Step 9: Vaccine Safety Monitoring
Normal Process:
After a vaccine receives FDA approval, the agency continues to monitor
its safety in partnership with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) through the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).
Operation Warp Speed:
This step remains the same under Operation Warp Speed. VAERS will still
be used to track side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine.