*Missouri Governor Michael L. Parson*

Office of Communications

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*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*

December 22, 2020

*Update on COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution and Administration in Missouri *

"Food and Drug AdmisntrationConfirm""Safety, Efficacy of""Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine"

*(JEFFERSON CITY, MO)* The state of Missouri continues to see the distribution and administration of COVID-19 vaccines according to the state's vaccination plan. Last Friday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, the second vaccine to be approved.

"The announcement of a second vaccine that is proven to be safe and effective in preventing COVID-19 is great news for the people of Missouri. The approval of an additional vaccine will help us move through the phases of our vaccination plan and offer more vaccines to Missourians, " said *Governor Mike Parson*. "While we continue to receive positive news in our fight against COVID-19, I remind Missourians that the virus is still here, and we all must take the necessary precautions to prevent the spread of this virus, especially through the holiday season."

To date, more than 23,000 vaccines have been administered to frontline health care workers and nursing home residents and staff according to Phase 1A of Missouri's Vaccination Plan. There are over 450,000 Missourians included in Phase 1A, which will take several weeks to complete. State and local governments and health care partners are administering vaccines to those recipients as efficiently as possible.

Currently, 285 facilities across the state are approved to administer the COVID-19 vaccine to Phase 1A eligible recipients within their facility. More than 700 additional facilities are expected to be approved within the coming days and weeks. Vaccinators have been approved in all geographic regions of Missouri, and more will continue to be brought onboard to ensure vaccines are distributed equitably and efficiently.

Updates are occurring daily to the state's COVID-19 websiteMOStopsCOVID.com [ [link removed] ]. This site is a great resourceto obtain the latestinformation, dispel vaccine myths, and find answersto common questions. Missouri's vaccine site has been nationally recognized and other state governments have sought to emulate this site for their own states.

_*Members of the media* and all Missourians are urged to help share the state's vaccinemessaging_. A resource toolkit has been made availableatwww.MOstopsCovid.com/toolkit [ [link removed] ].

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*Contact: Kelli R. Jones*

Communications Director

Work: 573-751-0765

Mobile: 573-508-9072

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.governor.mo.gov


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