Gov. Edwards expresses optimism about COVID-19 vaccine distribution in final news conference of 2020 Gov. Edwards optimistic about COVID-19 vaccine distribution day after record number of cases reported By Nick Gremillion | December 30, 2020 at 5:08 PM CST - Updated December 31 at 1:49 PM BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards expressed optimism about the stateâs continued rollout of two federally approved COVID-19 vaccines in his last public address of 2020. Gov. Edwards announced Thursday, Dec. 31 the state would receive enough doses of the Moderna-manufactured vaccine by Monday, Jan. 4, 2021 to begin vaccinating people in the first tier of the stateâs Priority Group 1B. Individuals 70 years of age and older, as well as, ambulatory and additional healthcare make up the first tier of Priority Group 1B.