Where are the vaccines in Florida? Some are delayed by winter storms, state says

Feb. 17—Winter storms have caused icy roads, flight cancellations and power outages across the country this week. The bad weather has also delayed Florida's incoming vaccine delivery.

Florida was expecting 200,000 Moderna vaccines to arrive Tuesday, but the hazardous weather stalled delivery, according to the Florida Division of Emergency Management, which is tasked with the state's vaccine distribution.

"It's a combination of the weather, the ice and then obviously the different logistics that result from that. If you have an appointment, like at Publix for Thursday and they have to delay you, that's almost assuredly why," Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday during a news conference in Manatee County. "So, just have patience on it. There's nothing we can do with the weather in other states."

Moderna's shipment is now expected to arrive Thursday or Friday.

DeSantis said the state has also received the "vast, vast majority"of its allotted Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine this week but is still waiting for about 9,000 doses. The state has so far received about 136,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine this week. The remaining Pfizer doses should arrive later Wednesday or Thursday, he said.

Division spokeswoman Samantha Bequer said the state has notified all vaccine providers about the delay and has asked them to reschedule appointments, if necessary, instead of canceling.

The delay forced Publix to cancel plans to make additional appointments available Wednesday. The Lakeland-based supermarket has been offering vaccines at more than 500 of its stores across the state, including in the Keys and Palm Beach County. None of the stores in Miami-Dade or Broward offer vaccines.

It's unclear whether the delivery delay has also affected Jackson Health System, Miami-Dade County's public hospital network. Jackson still had enough doses in stock to open its online portal early Wednesday to schedule a limited number of vaccination appointments.

The delay has also likely affected Walmart, Sam's Club, Winn-Dixie, Fresco y Mas and Harveys supermarkets, which began offering Moderna COVID-19 vaccines in Florida last week. Walmart and Southeastern Grocers, the parent company of Winn-Dixie, Fresco y Mas and Harveys, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told NBC News Tuesday it was expecting "widespread" delays in vaccine deliveries for several days because of the dangerous conditions. Besides Florida, other states have also reported shipment delays or have had to halt vaccinations because of the extreme weather.

Bradenton Herald staff writer Ryan Callihan contributed to this report.

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