State DOH updates residents on COVID-19 vaccine

State officials on Thursday advised residents to continue wearing masks and practicing social distancing, as a COVID-19 vaccine hadn't been approved -- even though one had been expected to be ready this month.

"There will be a day when we can move away from those other precautions, but we aren't there yet," the release stated.

The Washington State Department of Health updated residents on a COVID-19 vaccine and indicated one hopefully would be available by the end of the year.

But no estimates on the amount of doses, timing or information from the federal government on allocation was provided.

"We do not have any information from the federal government on timeline," said Danielle Koenig, state DOH representative, over the phone.

As of Nov. 4, four vaccines were in large scale clinical trials in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website.

And, on Monday, New York-based Pfizer, and BioNTech in Germany, both announced their coronavirus vaccine was more than 90% effective, according to The New York Times.

Vaccines will be limited at first, the DOH stated, and it is unknown how long the drug will protect against the virus.

During the last month, the department said it has communicated with various groups impacted by coronavirus, hearing "some questions and concerns about the safety of the vaccine."

"We want to give people the highest confidence that they are getting clear and accurate information about COVID-19 vaccines," the release stated. "Vaccines are held to very high standards, and the COVID-19 vaccine will be no different... Any approved vaccine will continue to be monitored for safety concerns."

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