CAO Message: Vaccine Progress and a Big Milestone

Message from Helen Robbins-Meyer, Chief Administrative Officer

The number is growing constantly, but as I send this, well over half a million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been given out in San Diego County.  

We continue to bring new vaccination sites online, from the super stations to smaller locations. A big shoutout to all the County employees who’ve had a hand in this massive – and historic! – undertaking. It’s been a scramble, and yes, it’s had some bumps, but we are making progress.   

Naturally, we all want to see the process move along even faster. Getting to herd immunity levels will be an essential step in letting businesses and other activities more fully reopen. We all want to get there ASAP!  

However, there’s just not enough supply yet to meet the demand. We get that it’s super frustrating at this point to have this tool so close yet still out of reach for many of our residents. But we – the County and all the other providers administering vaccines – can’t give out what we don’t have. Thank you for your patience as we wait for more doses to arrive. 

I also want to note a big milestone for us. This Sunday marks one year since the County proclaimed an emergency to respond to the novel coronavirus.  

By that date last year, the County’s medical operations center team was already in high gear, having activated weeks before. And about a month after that proclamation, the statewide stay-home order went into effect, changing everyone’s lives. 

So the exact date varies for when each of us can say we’ve been living the pandemic response a full year now. Whether you’ve not quite hit the mark or passed it, it’s been a long time. And I want you all to know that I realize it’s been not just long, but an immensely challenging and exhausting time. We’ve had to make countless adjustments to daily routines and forgo so many things we used to take for granted. Everyone’s had to keep digging into reserves of energy while running a marathon with no clear finish line.  

I could fill pages recognizing the work County employees have done over the last year. From the huge team dealing directly with the health response to everyone who’s had to change what they do to ensure we keep providing the whole gamut of County services. I can’t thank you enough. The silver lining of this difficult time is seeing your dedication to our residents. It’s truly inspiring. 

We can allow ourselves some optimism. Case numbers are headed the right direction, and as I said, vaccines are moving through the population. There’s still a long road ahead, and even as we get a handle on the virus itself, we’ll still have economic recovery to work through. 

A year in, we’ll still need to find that extra energy a while more. I’ll ask you to make sure you continue to take care of yourself. And let’s all keep looking out for and supporting each other. We’ve come far together and we’ll come out the other side together.