TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — 29,850 vaccines is what Pima County was receiving per week, that number is going down to 17,850.
VULNERABLE POPULATIONS
"Our state has a higher number of folks 65 and up. Our state has a higher number of folks that are Latino."
Pima County Supervisor Dr. Matt Heinz described vulnerable populations who live in Arizona to justify why the state needs as many vaccines as possible.
He said no clear explanation was given why from the state.
FRUSTRATION AND ACTION
"It's very frustrating for all of us here in leadership in Pima County and the administration."
So frustrating in fact, the county's chair, Sharon Bronson, drafted multiple letters, to Governor Doug Ducey, both Arizona U.S. Senators and every member of Congress with a district in Pima County.
In those letters, obtained by KGUN9, a plea to increase to supply of vaccines provided to the state.
CURBING THE COUNTY'S PROGRESS
"We have that capacity, built-in, to do more."
Dr. Heinz said the county was distributing up to 7,000 vaccines a day at its sites, with the capacity to give up to 10,000.
"That number is necessarily going to have to go down, at least temporarily."
FEWER VACCINES WILL BE ADMINISTERED
By an estimate he provided, he said the decrease in the number of vaccines sent to the county from 29,000 to 17,000 means the county might only be able to give 4,000 vaccines a day.
"The sign-up is going to get probably more restricted, they're going to decrease the number of available spots."
Making what he described as an alarming situation, even more so.
RISING DEATH RATE
He said 128 people have died in Pima County so far from COVID-19 this month.
The daily average of deaths in the last two months: 11 and 16 respectively.
Take the number of deaths in the first three days of February, compensating for the deaths not yet reported on Thursday: you get a daily average of 42 deaths.
