Mosaic Life Care unsure which COVID-19 vaccine they'll receive

(ST. JOSEPH, Mo.) Mosaic Life Care is preparing for Missouri's COVID-19 vaccine distribution, but they're left with more questions than answers.

As of Friday, Mosaic doesn't know which COVID-19 vaccine they'll get or how much they'll receive.

“We have no idea and I repeat- I have no idea and have not been told how many vaccines we will receive,” said Dr. Davin Turner, Chief Medical Officer at Mosaic Life Care.

Turner said, “A week ago I would’ve told you it was Pfizer. This week, it was mentioned the state was going to get a fair amount of Moderna and they did mention they plan to use that in the more rural settings. The interesting thing is, sometimes we fall into the rural setting, sometimes we fall into the metropolitan setting.”

The local hospital is hoping the vaccine arrives before Christmas as it's seeing 1 out of every 3 symptomatic patients testing positive with the virus.

“If we receive this vaccine by say the 21st or 22nd of this month, we will start vaccinating before Christmas,” said Turner.

While Mosaic doesn't have all the answers on the vaccine, we do know who will be vaccinated first- frontline caregivers. Turner said when the vaccine arrives, Mosaic will administer as much of the vaccine, if not all, to their tier 1 A group within 10 days, per CDC guidelines.

While there are some worries surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine, Dr. Turner said he will be first in line to take it.

“Yes, I will be getting the vaccine along with Dr. Laney and Dr. Kammerer. We believe in the technology and believe the technology is safe. We will receive the vaccine,” said Turner.

The amount of vaccine Mosaic will receive is unknown, but they're hoping for enough to administer to their some 4,000 employees, but those vaccines will not be mandated.

“I have said this once and I’ll say it again- this vaccine will be optional,” said Turner.

While the vaccine is not requird by the local hospital, it is highly encouraged. Turner said after Mosaic surveyed their caregivers and providers, the majority said they will be taking the vaccine.

Turner said it's important to note, the vaccine will not replace COVID-19 safety precautions.

“Masks aren’t going away for a long time. Just because the vaccine is going to show up here, I want you to know, we here at Mosaic will be in a mask all next year. I just do not see us not having a mask for the next year at least just because of the timeline it’s going to take to get the majority of the population vaccinated,” said Turner.

Mosaic said for caregivers who've previously tested positive with the virus, new hospital policy requires those employees to wait three months to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.