Video: COVID-19 vaccines arrive at BJC HealthCare

ST. LOUIS — Thousands of COVID-19 vaccines arrived at BJC HealthCare on Tuesday and hospital employees will begin receiving vaccinations Thursday.

The hospital system will begin with "frontline, patient-facing" health care workers at eight of its locations. 

BJC HealthCare said it received 9,750 Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines. 

On Monday, the first shipments of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived in the state.

On Dec. 11, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency use authorization for the vaccine. 

In the St. Louis area, the chief medical officer at Mercy Hospital South was the first person to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

"I am the first person, but really it's about all the health care workers and coworkers across the country," Dr. Aamina Akhtar said. 

Gov. Mike Parson's office said both preparation and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine continue to run according to Missouri's COVID-19 vaccine plan, which was submitted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in October. 

Shipments of the vaccine will continue throughout the week to each of Missouri's 21 initial vaccination sites.

The sites include hospitals and health care facilities across the state. As each vaccination site receives its shipment of vaccines, implementation of Phase 1 of Missouri's COVID-19 vaccine plan will begin.

Local officials and health experts continue to remind people to wear face masks, practice social distancing, hand washing and avoiding crowds and large gatherings.

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