BREAKING: County to share hundreds of doses with Beaumont and PA

In the wake of an announcement Saturday, Jan. 17, that Jefferson County was to receive 1,950 doses of the vaccine through the public health department, it has been learned that much of the designated doses not earmarked for county employee administration will be heading to cities for public administration.

According to Jefferson County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike White, the Pfizer vaccine shipment anticipated by the county would hopefully be enough to inoculate county staff and still have a lot left over for public dispersal.

“We’ll do everything we can to get the vaccine administered as soon as possible after receipt,” White said, “first doing county employees who are 1A and 1B and then to the public.”

Beaumont Mayor Becky Ames, while setting up a vaccination hub, called on the county to release as many doses of the vaccine as possible to the city for administration to the public at large.

“He told me he made the decision to take 300 or 400 for 1A and 1B county employees and he’ll split the balance between Port Arthur and Beaumont, probably by population," Ames said of her conversation with County Judge Jeff Branick. With that, the city could be in receipt of upwards of 1,000 doses of the vaccine as early as Jan. 19.