States draft vaccine plans as coronavirus daily death toll tops 3,100

States have drafted their plans for coronavirus vaccine distribution as the daily death toll from the virus exceeded 3,100.

The U.S. recorded 3,156 deaths on Wednesday, the highest single-day death toll to date.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s independent Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended that the first limited-supply doses of a vaccine should go to health care workers and residents in long-term care facilities.

States have to submit their vaccine distribution plans to the federal government on Friday, and some appear to be following the panel’s recommendation. However, others have to make decisions about residents specific to their states and economy.

Under Colorado’s plan, for instance, ski resort workers who share close quarters are in the second phase of distribution, The Associated Press reported.

Meanwhile, Nevada initially put nursing home patients behind police officers, teachers, airport operators and retail workers, the news outlet reports. Authorities said they would revise the plan to prioritize nursing home patients.

Illinois’s plan places health care workers at the highest priority, according to AP, as well as first responders.

No vaccine has been authorized for distribution yet, but a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel is set to meet on Dec. 10 to discuss the vaccine manufactured by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech. The agency could issue an emergency use authorization within days.

Federal health officials said they expect to have enough doses of Pfizer’s vaccine and another from Moderna to vaccinate 20 million people by the end of the year. The doses will be available on a rolling basis, and supply will be extremely limited.

The U.S. officially recorded more than 14 million coronavirus infections as of Thursday, less than a week after the country topped the 13 million threshold. Newly reported infections exceeded 200,000 for the second day in a row as well.