Arizona has turned down an offer from the federal government for a federally run COVID-19 vaccine site in the state. 

The state wants more doses to expand capacity at existing state-run sites and to add appointments at pharmacies and in communities, but it does not need the new federal site, Dr. Cara Christ, director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, said during a Friday news briefing. 

“We just need the additional vaccine,” Christ said. “We’ve got the sites, they are fully staffed, they are efficient, people can get in and out of our sites in 30 minutes, and so what we were asking for was just the additional vaccine so that we can operate our sites at the capacity that we had planned.”

The state has been applying for additional COVID-19 vaccine doses from the federal government since mid-January, saying its sites are not at capacity and can administer more doses, but the request repeatedly has been denied. 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency last week offered to stand up a vaccine site or two in Arizona instead, the only way they could bring Arizona more doses, Christ said.

But a number of factors made the state uncomfortable in saying yes to the federal site or sites, which likely would have gone to Pima and Maricopa counties.

While the federal site initially would get additional doses beyond what the state already receives, it’s unclear whether that supply would continue to come straight from the federal pool or whether the state would need to send some of its allocated doses to that site, Christ said.

“That made us a little bit nervous and we couldn’t get great answers on that,” Christ said. “(We were) less hesitant to turn down additional doses when we’re hearing that they may not stay additional doses — that they may come out of the state’s allocation that we’re currently getting.”

Additionally, Christ said the federal site would not allow for state oversight on medical or managerial aspects, including efficiency and customer service, even though the state would have to provide significant staffing and resources to operate the site.

State officials offered to partner with FEMA on an existing state-run site or a future planned site, but FEMA said they would need medical and planning oversight, per Christ.

“Looking at our sites, we don’t really need assistance in standing up additional fixed or mobile resources. What we countered with was instead of using federally allocated vaccine at a site that doesn’t exist, a more efficient use of the vaccine would be to administer those doses at one of our currently operating locations,” she said.

Christ said her team talked with states that have federal vaccine sites, including California, and found they have “not fared as well,” whereas she said Arizona sites are “national models.”  

“We run our PODs relatively well, we get a lot of really positive feedback and I don’t know that Arizonans having to wait four to five hours to get through a non-state operated site would have been as acceptable as our current operations,” Christ said. 

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris took a virtual tour of the state-run State Farm Stadium vaccination site in early February, praising it as a model for other stadium vaccine sites nationwide. 

State PODs could be administering another 35,500 doses each day if there was more supply, Christ said. With planned future sites, that unfilled capacity jumps to 66,000 additional doses per day that could be administered if there was more vaccine. 

Pharmacies are prepared to vaccinate but have yet to receive any doses. Community partners are ready for community-based and mobile sites that just need the doses to get going, Christ said.

A FEMA spokesperson said in an email Friday that the agency commends Arizona on its vaccine efforts statewide and accepts its decision about the sites. 

“FEMA remains committed to supporting Arizona with funds to cover critical supplies, staffing, training and transportation needs to increase its vaccination efforts,” FEMA spokesperson Robert Barker wrote.

Arizona should get more doses soon 

The state’s vaccine allocation has seen some gradual increases week to week and is expected to significantly increase around the start of April, Christ said. 

This coming week, the state will receive close to 323,000 total vaccine doses, an increase from each week prior except for when the state first got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Arizona will get more Pfizer and Moderna doses for the week ahead than any week prior, according to state data. 

Weekly allocations should ramp up so that the state plans to open up appointment registration for everyone ages 16 and older by May 1.

State health officials have said they are working on plans for more state-run sites. Pharmacies, doctors’ offices, clinics and community partners will continue to receive doses as well. 

“Knowing that more vaccine is coming on the horizon, we did feel comfortable at this time declining on that (FEMA) offer,” Christ said.

Reach the reporter at [email protected] or at 602-444-4282. Follow her on Twitter @alisteinbach.

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