US Ranks 32nd In the World In Per-Capita Vaccine Reservations
Experts Blast Trump Admin. for Failing to Prepare for Vaccine Distribution
States Lack Funds for Vaccine Distribution, Risk Bankruptcy Unless McConnell Stops Obstructing Relief Package
31 Countries Beating United States in Per Capita Procurement of Vaccine Following Trump’s “Shocking Abdication” of Responsibility
- Bloomberg Analysis: “Thirty-One Countries Around The Globe Have Reserved More Covid-19 Vaccine Per Capita Than The U.S.” “Thirty-one countries around the globe have reserved more Covid-19 vaccine per capita than the U.S., according to a Bloomberg analysis of country vaccine agreements. The U.S. Operation Warp Speed program is credited with shaving years off the typical development timeline for vaccines that are now on the brink of being deployed. But after leading that effort, the U.S. has yet to exercise some options to lock down additional supplies that could offer extra insurance against manufacturing problems or scientific delays.” [Bloomberg, 12/9/20]
- Craig Garthwaite, Director Of The Program On Healthcare At Northwestern University’s Kellogg School Of Management: “On Any Dimension You Want To Talk About, It’s A Shocking Abdication Of Government Responsibility.” “‘On any dimension you want to talk about, it’s a shocking abdication of government responsibility,’ said Craig Garthwaite, the Director of the Program on Healthcare at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. ‘I’m so demoralized this will delay by another month or two getting the economy going.’” [Bloomberg, 12/9/20]
- Rena Conti, Boston University Health Economist: “A Spectacular Failure” If The US Missed Out On Doses Of Vaccine Because The Government Declined Them. “If the U.S. did miss out on more doses because it declined them, it would be ‘a spectacular failure,’ said Rena Conti, a health economist at Boston University. ‘Contracts are forward-looking, that means we could have (and did) sign contracts with other manufacturers that reserve future capacity when it became available,’ she said. ‘We should have [been] including language in every contract reserving the rights to more quantity in advance at a given price.’” [NPR, 12/10/20]
Trump Declined Multiple Offers From Pfizer to Secure More Doses of the Vaccine, Instead Allowing Limited Supply to Be Shipped Overseas
- The Trump Administration Turned Down An Opportunity To Secure Between 100 Million And 500 Million Additional Doses Of The Pfizer Vaccine. “The government was in July given the option to request 100 million to 500 million additional doses. But despite repeated warnings from Pfizer officials that demand could vastly outstrip supply and amid urges to pre-order more doses, the Trump administration turned down the offer, according to several people familiar with the discussions.” [New York Times, 12/7/20]
- Former FDA Commissioner And Pfizer Board Member Scott Gottlieb: Administration Declined “Multiple” Offers To Secure More Doses, Even After Vaccine Appeared To Be Effective. “Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a member of Pfizer’s board, told CNBC on Tuesday the company’s offers to provide the U.S. with additional doses of its coronavirus vaccine in 2021 were declined by the Trump administration… ‘Pfizer did offer up an additional allotment coming out of that plant, basically the second-quarter allotment, to the United States government multiple times and as recently as after the interim data came out and we knew this vaccine looked to be effective,’ said Gottlieb, who previously led the FDA in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019.” [CNBC, 12/8/20]
US Has No Plan, No Funding to Distribute Vaccine to High Priority Groups
- Claire Hannan, Executive Director Of The Association Of Immunization Managers: “A Chess Game” To Plan Vaccination Campaigns Because Immunization Managers Across The Country Are Getting Fluctuating Estimates Of How Much Vaccine To Expect. “Immunization managers across the country are getting fluctuating estimates on the supply of another promising new vaccine from the biotech company Moderna, [Claire Hannan, executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers] said, which is hindering their ability to plan. ‘They have to factor in what their allocation is and what their allocation is going to be, because in order for them to flip the switch on their long-term care facility program, they have to have enough allocation in one brand or the other,’ she said. ‘It’s kind of a chess game, making six moves in advance to get where they need to be.’” [NPR, 12/9/20]
- Hannan: “State And Local Governments Could Be Just Bankrupted By Rolling This Out.” “Funding is yet another hurdle for states in pulling off their vaccination campaigns. As Dr. Rachel Levine, Pennsylvania’s secretary of health, told NPR last week, the federal government allotted $340 million to states for vaccine distribution and administration, whereas it put billions toward producing a new COVID-19 vaccine. Hannan said that amount is simply not enough to fund the distribution of a vaccine adequately. ‘State and local governments could be just bankrupted by rolling this out,’ she said.” [NPR, 12/9/20]
- A November Kaiser Analysis Of 47 State Vaccine Distribution Plans Found That Most Have Not Completed Plans To Expand Delivery Systems, And Half Lack Data Management Programs To Track Inoculations. “According to the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation, which analyzed the vaccine distribution plans for 47 states, most have not completed plans to expand their vaccine delivery systems — a monumental task that will include identifying and vetting hundreds, or potentially thousands, of new vaccine providers per state. Nearly half don’t have data management programs comprehensive or reliable enough to keep track of who gets inoculated when (crucial information, especially given that all the vaccines on offer so far involve two doses). Less than half say they are prepared to identify and tally the number of people in their state who will be eligible for the very first shots, and few — between half and one-third — have plans to combat vaccine misinformation or reach racial minorities and other vulnerable populations.” [NYT Opinion, 12/9/20]
- The Analysis Found That Only About A Quarter Of State Plans Mention Providers Needed To Reach Racial Minorities. “Only a subset (12 of 47, or 26%) of state plans specifically mention or consider providers that are needed to reach racial and ethnic minorities. Across plans, the most common types of providers that states report still needing to reach out to or incorporate as COVID-19 vaccine providers include: tribal providers, long-term care facilities, correctional facilities, and other types of adult care providers.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 11/18/20]
- States Will Be Forced To Face Challenges Distributing The Vaccine To Geographically Diverse Populations With Little Federal Support, While Resources Are Already Stressed Amid Surging Cases. “State vaccination plans vary widely and leave many questions unanswered. Health officials are having to prioritize among competing groups including older adults, teachers and minority communities disproportionately affected by Covid-19. Many states also face challenges getting the vaccine to dramatically different populations, from crowded and diverse cities to isolated rural towns. And they have to do it while coping with a surge in coronavirus cases already straining resources in many parts of the nation… For communities with fewer health-care resources, distributing vaccines while also dealing with Covid-19 cases will be particularly difficult. Many states have seen intensive-care units near or at capacity and shortages of qualified health-care workers because some are sick or quarantining.” [Wall Street Journal, 12/9/20]