Monument Health in Rapid City was the first health care system in South Dakota to receive the new Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
Monument got about a thousand of the state’s allotment of 7,800 doses Monday morning with Avera Health in Sioux Falls getting its share later in the day. Sanford Health is due to receive it on Tuesday.
The initial doses are going voluntarily to front-line healthcare workers, and both Monument and Avera reported a good response from them. The Pfizer vaccine requires two doses administered about three weeks apart.