These Houston-area hospitals are set to receive the coronavirus vaccine first -

The Houston-area’s first batch of the coronavirus vaccine will include 59,475 doses of the inoculation, state health authorities announced Friday.

Earlier this week, Gov. Greg Abbott said that the state would receive its first allotment of the vaccine — approximately 1.4 million doses from the drug makers Pfizer and Moderna — beginning in mid-December, pending federal approval.

“As expected, the initial vaccine supply is limited, and the first week’s allocation is based on information submitted by vaccine providers when they enrolled, including the number of health care workers who can be quickly vaccinated and vaccine storage capacity at each site,” DSHS said in a news update on its website. “More vaccine will be available for more providers in the following weeks, including vaccine from Moderna once it is authorized.”

Larger allotments are expected in January and in the following months, Abbott said in a release.

“The State of Texas is already prepared for the arrival of a COVID-19 vaccine, and will swiftly distribute these vaccines to Texans who voluntarily choose to be immunized,” Abbott said in a release. “As we await the first shipment of these vaccines, we will work with communities to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.”

Approximately 224,000 doses are expected to arrive as early as Dec. 14, according to the Texas Department of State Health Service. Authorities will distribute the initial shipment to 109 hospitals in 34 counties throughout the state.

21 hospitals in Harris County, four in Montgomery County, one in Galveston County and one in Fort Bend County were selected to receive the vaccine.

State health officials said hospital staff working directly with patients who have tested positive or are at high risk for COVID-19, emergency medical service providers who engage in 911 emergency services like pre-hospital care and transport, home health care workers, and residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities are among the first tier of Texans eligible to receive the vaccine.

Here’s a list of the local hospitals set to receive the state’s first allocation of the vaccine.