U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administer COVID-19 Vaccines in the Republic Palau

KOROR, Palau –– The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

(HHS) are currently in Republic of Palau assisting the nation’s Ministry of

Health to administer COVID-19 vaccines to the local population.

!The team is here to augment Palau"s MOH vaccination POD at the

National Gymnasium. We are a small contingent of a larger trauma critical

care team consisting of 200 clinical and non-clinical personnel,”

said Phil Nix, the team commander for the HHS trauma critical care team.

“Our primary mission is to respond to public health emergencies and natural

disasters. This past year, however, we have been taking care of critical

COVID-19 patients in the U.S.”

The ROP remains one of the few countries in the world with zero COVID-19

infections. For the HHS team, this mission is a welcome departure from the

missions they have been executing this past year.

!We have been deploying to hot spots in the U.S. that have been stretched

to their limits fighting COVID-19. Up until now we have been seeing the

sickest of the sick COVID-19 patients, many of whom were fighting for their

lives on ventilators,” said Cecily Wang, an HHS surgeon. “Palau is uniquely

COVID-19-free, and we want to ensure it stays that way. We want to

vaccinate as many people as possible to ensure the people of this country

do not experience what we"ve seen during our missions in the U.S.” she

said.

!In addition to vaccine administration, we will also conduct knowledge

exchanges with the Palau"s MOH to discuss lessons learned from our

experiences in the U.S. to ensure the local MOH is better prepared for

anything that may happen in the future,” added Wang.

It takes a coordinated effort from all levels of government to ensure Palau

remains COVID-19-free.

!When the COVID-19 pandemic started around January 2020, the MOH

was able to stand up our emergency operations center (EOC) and started

implementing point of entry screening to prevent the arrival of COVID-19 in

Palau,” said Gaafar Uherbelau, MOH EOC Deputy Incident Commander.

“We also cancelled all flights from areas of concern. Suspending these

flights prevented COVID-19 from reaching our shores. Implementing these

measures took cooperation from all levels of government.”

Uherbelau acknowledges the effect COVID-19 has had on the local

economy but stressed the importance of safety.

!The MOH prioritizes the health of Palau"s citizens first. We will always

advise the strictest strategies to prevent the arrival and community

transmission of COVID-19. We understand that restrictions have had an

immense impact on the economy, but transmission and spread of COVID-

19 would only further exacerbate current economic issues,” said Uherbelau.

!Palau is truly blessed to have such a good relationship with the U.S. unlike

other Pacific island countries who are currently struggling to get enough

COVID-19 vaccines to their people. With the assistance of the U.S., we will

be able to vaccinate 80% of the population,” said Uherbelau.

COVID-19 remains a global challenge that no nation can face alone – our

strong network of alliances and partnerships is critical to combating this

virus. The U.S. Army and TF Oceania, in partnership with HHS, U.S.

Embassies, and other partners, stands ready and prepared to operate