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North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services this week released a list of health care providers in the state who will receive the first shipments of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine and Atrium Health in Charlotte is one of the 11 selected.

For Phase 1a, the initial supply of vaccines will go to a small number of hospitals to vaccinate front-line medical workers at high risk of exposure to the virus and people working in long-term care facilities.

With the Food and Drug Administration approving emergency use authorization of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine Thursday, shipments of the vaccine should be sent to the state on Monday. The hope is for the Moderna vaccine to be approved and then shipped to the state the following week.

It’s not exactly sure when Atrium Health will receive the shipments and when or if any of the initial doses will be distributed to satellite branches like Atrium Health Stanly in Albemarle.

“We’re excited to be getting some vaccine,” Dr. Lewis McCurdy, special director of infectious diseases at Atrium Health, said on a Zoom conference call with reporters. “I don’t think we’ve been told how many doses we’ll be provided initially.”

During the Stanly County Commissioners meeting Monday, Stanly County Health Director David Jenkins said his team is working to create plans to deliver the vaccines to the public. The vaccine delivery, which will be via drive-through, will likely be similar to how the department currently administers coronavirus tests to people.

Jenkins met with Atrium Health Stanly staff and emergency management officials on Tuesday to discuss how they would work together to coordinate the local vaccination plan. In an emailed statement to the Stanly News & Press after the meeting, Jenkins said that “we are still in need of direction from the state at this time as far as how we prioritize vaccines.”

State health officials expect the first vaccine shipment to contain about 85,000 doses. Each person receiving the vaccine will need two doses in order to be properly vaccinated. A total of 100 million doses will be shipped across the country.

Pfizer’s early data has shown that the vaccine is more than 90 percent effective.

CVS and Walgreens, through a Pharmacy Partnership Program with DHHS, will administer the vaccine to residents and staff at nursing homes and adult congregate living facilities.

Here is the full list of sites across North Carolina that will receive the first shipment of vaccines:

• Bladen Healthcare LLC (Bladen County Hospital)
• Caldwell Memorial Hospital
• CarolinaEast Medical Center
• Catawba Valley Medical Center
• Cumberland County Hospital System Inc (Cape Fear Valley Health System)
• Duke University Health System
• Henderson County Hospital Corporation (Margaret R. Pardee Memorial Hospital)
• Hoke Healthcare LLC (Hoke Hospital)
• The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Hospital Authority (CMC Enterprise)
• University of North Carolina Shared Services Agreement
• Wake Forest Baptist Health