The residents and staff members at a Seattle-area nursing home that had the first deadly COVID-19 outbreak in the United States began receiving vaccines on Monday.
The first death associated with the Life Care Center of Kirkland, Washington, was reported in late February, and more than 40 people connected to the facility later died of coronavirus.
In this March 6, 2020, file photo, an ambulance backs into a parking lot, at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash., which at the time was the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in Washington state. Residents and staff at Life Care Center started receiving their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, Dec. 28, 2020.
Ted S. Warren / AP
The Seattle Times reports that Monday was the first day long-term care facilities can receive vaccines under a federal partnership with CVS and Walgreens, which is handling shots for the bulk of the state's approximately 4,000 long-term care facilities.
Along with health-care workers, Washington has recommended that nursing home residents receive the vaccine first, followed by residents of assisted-living facilities, adult family homes and other care sites. State officials have set a goal for all residents to receive the first dose of the two-dose vaccine by the end of January.
“I think everyone in the skilled nursing industry is thankful that a vaccine is available and being administered, but it means a little more to see vaccinations happening at Kirkland,” Ellie Schutt, executive director of Life Care Center of Kirkland, said in a statement.
Since the start of the pandemic there have been more than 236,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Washington state and more than 3,180 deaths.