The Food and Drug Administration gave its approval Friday evening for the drug company Pfizer's vaccine to fight COVID -19.
"I think by next week we should have vaccines being given to health care workers and to people that live in assisted living facilities and nursing homes," infectious disease expert Dr. Kleper De Almeida said.
De Almeida said the process to create a vaccine was shortened.
"I'm impressed at the speed that our scientist worked to produce this vaccine," he said.
De Almeida said within the first three weeks, health care workers and people who live in assisted living facilities and nursing homes will get the vaccine. The next group to be vaccinated will be first responders and essential workers and then the general public sometime in the spring.
"We'd like to see a seamless implementation of this vaccination program. It's a huge undertaking," he said.
De Almeida said the Pfizer vaccine has cleared a higher bar than previous vaccines so he's confident in its effectiveness.
Confidence on the streets about the vaccine is mixed.
"No, I wouldn't take it because people are taking it now and they are getting sick," Jerrod Pinkney said.
Tina Martin isn't reluctant to take the vaccine.
"I would take the vaccine because I work in healthcare. I work in a dental office, we see a lot of people every day and it's a piece of mind," she said.
While Tigre Dauod agrees with Pinkney.
"I wouldn't the trial period wasn't long enough," he said
De Almeida said administering the vaccines will fall in the hands of nurses.
He said the number of vials Florida receives depends on the number of patients living in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and health care workers.
