Early recipients of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine began receiving their second doses at UNC Medical Center on Tuesday.

The second doses of the Pfizer vaccine began Tuesday at UNC’s Medical Center in Chapel Hill and UNC Health’s Hillsborough campus. Second rounds of vaccination will begin Thursday for employees at UNC REX in Raleigh.

Dr. David Weber, the Medical Director for Infection Prevention at UNC Health, was one of the first to receive the second dose of the COVID vaccine.

“I’m very pleased to be one of the first healthcare providers to do that [receive the vaccine] as I will be seeing patients next week,” Weber said. “First dose went extremely well. I had a little bit of pain the night I received the shot but by the next day I was fine. I had no problems with today’s shot and I’m not anticipating any at all.”

According to a statement from UNC Health officials, more than 14,000 employees and frontline workers have been vaccinated as of Tuesday. All employees currently vaccinated fall under Phase 1A criteria of Orange County’s four-phase vaccination plan.

Health care workers like doctors, nurses and those who care for coronavirus-infected patients are all included in Phase 1A of distribution.

Pfizer’s vaccine was first made available in North Carolina, including at UNC’s Medical Center, the week of December 14. The state initially received nearly 85,000 doses. North Carolina got more than 175,000 doses of Moderna’s vaccine the following week. Now, North Carolina expects to get 60,000 weekly doses of each vaccine through the end of January.

According to the state health department, as of January 5, 109,799 North Carolinians have received their first COVID-19 vaccination. 461 people have completed both doses.

You can learn more about Orange County’s vaccine distribution plan here.

Lead photo via UNC Medical Center. 

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees. You can support local journalism and our mission to serve the community. Contribute today – every single dollar matters.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Health Launches New Twitter Account to Distribute Leftover Vaccine Doses
Chapel Hill residents who want to get the COVID-19 vaccine now have a new platform to find appointments — a new Twitter account created by UNC Health. The new account (@uncstandbycovi1) was created to ensure that unused doses of the vaccine find a host at the end of the day. UNC Health confirmed the validity […]
UNC Health: More Than 50,000 Vaccine Appointments Scheduled, No Waitlist Available
UNC Health has administered more than 75,000 COVID-19 vaccinations across the state with more than 50,000 future appointments already scheduled amid an increasingly-limited number of available doses.
UNC Health Ramps Up Phase 1B Vaccine Distribution in Chapel Hill
This week, UNC Health opened more than a dozen clinics across North Carolina to provide COVID-19 vaccinations.
'The Safety Data Looks Really Good': UNC Expert Discusses Side Effects, Efficacy of Vaccine
Frontline workers at UNC Health’s Medical Center are expected to receive COVID-19 vaccines today. Other hospitals in the system, including UNC REX in Raleigh, are expected to get vaccines later in the week.
UNC Health Begins to Lift Visitor Restrictions at Triangle Locations
UNC Health is easing its visitor restrictions for the first time in months, citing requirements to continue protecting patients and staff from COVID-19. The health system issued a release on Monday saying effective immediately, patients at the UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill, UNC Hospitals in Hillsborough and the UNC REX Hospital in Raleigh are […]
UNC Hospitals Interpreter, 29, Dies from Coronavirus
An interpreter for the UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill recently died after contracting COVID-19. A report from WRAL said Dulce Garcia, 29, passed away on May 26 after battling the virus. The piece reported a UNC Hospitals spokesperson said the institution believes Garcia contracted COVID-19 from exposure in the community and not while on […]
UNC Health Experts: New Illness in Children Likely a Reaction to COVID-19
As medical experts continue to learn more about the coronavirus, they’re studying its effects on children. While the illness typically produces weaker symptoms compared to older patients, it’s believed the virus is causing a new reaction in some kids. Dr. Eveline Wu works for UNC Health as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatric Allergy, Immunology […]
UNC Health Emergency Departments Working Together for Pandemic Response
The emergency departments at many hospitals around the country have shifted their efforts to help fight the COVID-19 outbreak, including those of UNC Health. Compared to other areas of hospitals, emergency departments are relatively quiet right now with many people staying at home. Dr. Abhi Mehrotra, who is overseeing UNC Health’s emergency department response to […]
UNC Health: 12 Employees in Chapel Hill Test Positive for COVID-19
UNC Health recently had a group of employees at the UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill test positive for COVID-19. A spokesperson for the health care system shared a statement with Chapelboro on Thursday confirming multiple employees have tested positive. It said the system has tested hundreds of its more than 13,000 employees at the […]
UNC Health Provides Updates on Occupancy, PPE and Protocols as COVID-19 Cases Rise
UNC Health provided an update to the public on Monday about its treatment of COVID-19 patients, stockpiles of medical supplies and preparation for more cases soon. The health system first confirmed it was treating a positive COVID-19 case in its health system on March 19. Since then, Christian Lawson, UNC Medical Center’s Clinical Director of Emergency […]
›