New COVID-19 vaccination site open in the East Valley amid ongoing vaccine rollout efforts

New COVID-19 vaccination site opens in the Valley

The new site is located at the Phoenix Municipal Stadium in the East Valley.

PHOENIX - The second major state-run vaccination site is now open, with the first vaccinations at the Phoenix Municipal Stadium being given on the morning of Feb. 1.

"The goal is to increase capacity and get as many Arizonans vaccinated as possible," said Arizona Department of Health Services Director, Dr. Cara Christ.

A few educators and state troopers were receiving their second COVID-19 vaccine dose at the stadium.

"The vaccination site we are opening today has the same capacity as the State Farm Stadium operation, but for now, its capacity is limited to around 500 doses per day because of the limited vaccine supply," said Dr. Christ.

That limited supply is something state officials are trying to fix. According to Dr. Christ, Arizona officials have asked the federal government to increase the number of doses coming to the state.

"This week, between Monday and Wednesday, we anticipate getting between 160,000 to 170,000 doses. That’s both the first and second phases, both Pfizer and Moderna," said Dr. Christ. "We have not been given our three-week forecast. We’re waiting for that, but what we’re assuming is the amount we got this week is probably stable over the next couple of weeks."

Dr. Christ says until then, they are monitoring the vaccine at each site to make sure more doses can go where the demand is higher, in an effort to make sure that vaccine doses are not sitting on the shelves.

Dr. Christ says in the coming weeks, people should see an increase in Moderna vaccine here in the state.

"The state-run sites run using the Pfizer, which is primarily reserved for Maricopa County and Pima County because of the stringent storage requirements with it, so the rural counties get the majority of the Moderna doses, so that increase will go to help them," said Dr. Christ.

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COVID-19 symptoms

Symptoms for coronavirus COVID-19 include fever, coughing, and shortness of breath. These, of course, are similar to the common cold and flu.

Expect a common cold to start out with a sore or scratchy throat, cough, runny and/or stuffy nose. Flu symptoms are more intense and usually come on suddenly, and can include a high fever.

Symptoms of COVID-19 may appear more slowly. They usually include fever, a dry cough and noticeable shortness of breath, according to the World Health Organization. A minority of cases develop pneumonia, and the disease is especially worrisome for the elderly and those with other medical problems such as high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes or heart conditions.