Desert Southwest healthcare networks prep for more vaccines to arrive

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - As more shipments of the coronavirus vaccine make their way to the desert Southwest, drive-thru vaccination sites will be popping up all over in a few days.

As of Friday, over 260,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Arizona.

Mayor Doug Nicholls released a statement Friday revealing that Yuma County will receive 6,900 vaccines Tuesday, January 19th, and the booking of appointments will begin the same day.

RELATED: Yuma County confirms – more vaccines to arrive next week

Sen. Mark Kelly speaking with the Yuma mayor this past week.

“I was on the phone the, with the mayor the other day and Yuma County officials about COVID-19," the senator said.

“That number needs to go up if we're going to effectively get to you know herd immunity in a reasonable amount of time, so I've already spoken to my republican and democrat colleagues about this,” Sen. Kelly added.

These vaccines will only for tier 1A, as well as, teachers, law enforcement, and people 65 and over.

Yesterday, Yuma Regional Medical Center announced plans to set up a mass vaccination site when the vaccines are distributed.

The hospital’s chief medical officer telling me the site will impact the community tremendously.

“We want to make a sincere attempt to put a dent in the pandemic some final details to run by but we're going to use the civic center, we know we're gonna need at least for one or two months. We're gonna try to staff it for enough vaccinations per day to again as I said having a real meaningful impact in the number of positive cases in the community,” Dr. Bharat Magu said.

RELATED: YRMC: First Yuma County mass vaccination site in the works

Over in Imperial County, both Pioneers Memorial Healthcare District & El Centro Regional Medical Center (ECRMC) will hold drive-thru clinics on Monday, January 18th for people over the age of 65.

Both locations will be first come first serve basis. ECRMC has 600 doses and 300 doses over at pioneers.

President-elect Joe Biden outlining his plan to administer the vaccine to more Americans as soon as he takes office.

“We're gonna make sure there are vaccination centers in communities hit hardest by the pandemic, in black and Latino communities, rural communities as well. Within the first month of our administration, we're going to deploy mobile clinics, mobile clinics, moving community to community that will partner with community health centers and local primary care doctors to offer vaccines to hard hit and hard to reach communities in cities, small towns and rural communities,” said the newly elected president.

Over 12-million people have been vaccinated in the united states but that is far from the 31-million distributed to the states.

That’s about 19-million vaccines just sitting.

All eyes will be on the new presidential administration to get shots into more people's arms.