Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Provides “Strong Protection” Against Virus
Moderna Pursuing Plan to Expand Number of Doses in Vials
Evidence Suggests Vaccines Are Effective at Slowing Spread
Still, Republicans United Against ARP and Funding for Vaccine Distribution
Protect Our Care’s Coronavirus War Room Director Zac Petkanas released the following statement:
“A full year into this crisis, Congressional Republicans are determined to light themselves on fire politically by trying to hold up President Biden’s overwhelmingly popular American Rescue Plan.
“There’s no greater evidence of this than on the vaccine front. As we receive good news on vaccine production and efficacy, Republicans are opposing money for distribution that will actually get the doses in people’s arms.
“Let’s be clear: they will have to answer for why they’re playing politics with the virus by opposing this overwhelmingly popular package and, effectively, trying to drag out this crisis longer than it needs to be by slowing the vaccine distribution process. And they’ll answer for it at the ballot box next year.”
Background: Despite Good News On The Vaccine Front, Republicans Stand Against Funding For Distribution
- The FDA Has Found That Johnson & Johnson’s Vaccine Provides Strong Protection Against COVID-19 — And Could Authorize Its Use As Early As Saturday. “The one-shot coronavirus vaccine made by Johnson & Johnson provides strong protection against severe disease and death from Covid-19, and may reduce the spread of the virus by vaccinated people, according to new analyses posted online by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday. The vaccine had a 72 percent overall efficacy rate in the United States… The analyses confirmed that Americans are likely to benefit soon from a third effective coronavirus vaccine developed in under a year, as demand for inoculations greatly outstrips supply. The F.D.A. could authorize the vaccine as early as Saturday.” [New York Times, 2/24/21]
- The Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Can Be Stored At Normal Refrigeration Temperatures, Which Will Facilitate Its Distribution. “Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine can be stored at normal refrigeration temperatures for at least three months, making its distribution considerably easier than the authorized vaccines made by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, which require two doses and must be stored at frigid temperatures.” [New York Times, 2/24/21]
- Moderna Could Expand The Number Of Vaccine Doses In Each Vial, And Increase Vaccine Supply Within Months. “Moderna Inc. said it has received positive feedback from U.S. regulators on a proposal to expand the number of doses of its Covid-19 vaccine in each vial, while Pfizer Inc. said it expects its output to ramp up in coming weeks. And Johnson & Johnson, which could gain clearance for its one-shot vaccine as soon as this week, said it will be ready to ship millions of doses. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration could allow it to put as many as 15 doses of its Covid-19 shot into each vial, Moderna said in testimony delivered Tuesday in the House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing. Currently, Moderna’s vials hold 10 doses. If authorized, the change could within months increase supply of this vaccine, as one of the main production bottlenecks for Moderna has been at vial-filling plants.” [Bloomberg, 2/22/21]
- A Growing Body Of Evidence Suggests That Vaccines Are Effective At Slowing Transmission Of The Virus. “A growing body of evidence suggests the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines do, in fact, cut down on viral transmission. Two recent studies show some pretty favorable results — one from the UK that found that two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine cut down by 86 percent someone’s chances of developing an infection that they could pass along, the other a study in Israel that found an 89.4 percent reduction (though it should be noted that the Israeli study has yet to be fully released). These findings are consistent with what we know about vaccines and transmission in general.” [Vox, 2/23/21]
- Despite The Good Vaccine News, Republicans Are United Against The American Rescue Plan, And The Vaccine Funding That Comes With It. “The House vote on President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief bill will be held on Friday, the majority leader announced. Biden on Tuesday indicated the congressional vote on the legislation would be close, speaking after GOP Senator Susan Collins said she doesn’t expect a single Republican vote in favor of it.” [Bloomberg, 2/23/21]
- Republican Leaders Are Working To Sabotage The Bill, Despite Broad, Bipartisan Support For Its Provisions. “Republican leaders in both chambers are maneuvering to keep all of their members in line against the $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief plan, a move that would deny President Joe Biden a bipartisan victory and one that could scuttle the bill in the Senate if any Democrat breaks ranks. But the move amounts to a political risk for Republicans with polls showing clear majorities of Americans supporting an emergency rescue package and with the economy still reeling from the coronavirus pandemic. So Republicans now plan to begin an urgent public relations push to argue that the bill is bloated, poorly targeted and contains a hodgepodge of measures aimed at pleasing the Democratic base — a message that party leaders discussed with their members at a private GOP lunch on Tuesday and that they plan to echo in the days ahead, attendees say.” [CNN, 2/23/21]
Background: Legislation To Enact The American Rescue Plan Includes Billions For Vaccine Distribution
- FUNDING FOR VACCINES AND THEIR DISTRIBUTION, TESTING, AND PANDEMIC RESPONSE: The reconciliation legislation allocates billions to continue ramping up a national vaccination campaign, including by setting up community vaccination clinics, deploying mobile units, and fortifying the vaccine supply chain. It also appropriates $50 billion to procure and administer tests, and to invest in lab capacity, and nearly $2 billion to expand the United States’ disease surveillance and genomic sequencing abilities as dangerous new variants of the virus spread. To ramp up the nation’s public health workforce, the legislation allocates nearly $8 billion for state, local, and territorial public health departments to recruit, train, and hire health workers.
- STATE AND LOCAL AID: The legislation allocates $350 billion in aid to states, territories, and local governments to mitigate the financial effects of the pandemic — including $20 billion reserved for Tribal governments, $195 billion for States and the District of Columbia, and $4.5 billion for territories, and $130 billion in grants and funding to be divided between counties and cities. It also appropriates $30 billion to transit agencies, including to keep transit workers safe, on the job, and paid. And to support the economic recovery of communities, the legislation appropriates $3 billion to the Economic Development Administration for grant-making and to bolster good-paying jobs.
- ECONOMIC RELIEF FOR STRUGGLING AMERICAN FAMILIES: The legislation boosts direct stimulus payments for struggling Americans to a total of $2,000 per person, and includes additional $1,400 payments per dependent. The bill also expands and extends unemployment insurance. Under the proposal, out-of-work Americans could access enhanced unemployment benefits through the end of September, including a weekly federal supplement of $400.
- RENTAL ASSISTANCE: The new legislation includes roughly $20 billion in emergency rental assistance to help tenants and landlords with back rent, $5 billion in emergency housing vouchers to help those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, and $10 billion for “qualified expenses,” including utilities like electric, gas, and water.
- FUNDING FOR K-12 SCHOOLS AND HIGHER EDUCATION: The legislation includes roughly $130 billion for K-12 schools and roughly $40 billion for institutions of higher education. This money is critical for ensuring social distancing, closing budget gaps, avoiding lay-offs, hiring health staff, and investing in supplies like PPE to help schools weather the rest of the pandemic, and to get kids back to the classroom. After the Council of Chief State School Officers this summer estimated that schools would need as much as $245 billion to open safely and the December relief package offered just about a fifth of that, this aid is needed to get students back in the classroom.
- FUNDING FOR CHILD CARE PROVIDERS: The legislation invests $39 billion for child care providers through the Child Care and Development Block Grant Program. While many child care providers have closed during the pandemic, others have been forced to raise prices to offset the costs of adhering to safety guidelines, hiring additional staff and buying cleaning supplies. This financial burden has been shifted to families, with the cost of child care rising an average of 47% during the pandemic.
- THE EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT AND THE CHILD TAX CREDIT: The legislation expands the Earned Income Tax Credit — which provides low-income earners with additional income — by lowering the eligibility age, eliminating the maximum eligibility age, and by increasing phaseout amounts. It would also increase the child tax credit to about $3,000 per child (or $3,600 for children under six) and make the credit fully refundable for families with no tax liability. Columbia University’s Center on Poverty and Social Policy estimates that these measures and others could cut child poverty in half.
- AID FOR SMALL BUSINESSES: The budget reconciliation legislation plan would funnel about $50 billion into struggling small businesses by providing $15 billion for the Targeted Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Advance program, $25 billion for a new program to support restaurants, $460 million for the disaster loan program, among other provisions.
- NUTRITION ASSISTANCE: The American Rescue Plan would help families as hunger has exploded across the country by extending a 15 percent increase in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program through September, investing more than $800 million in the Women, Infants and Children program, and providing $1 billion in additional nutrition assistance funding for territories.
- LOWER HEALTH CARE COSTS & EXPANDED COVERAGE: The American Rescue Plan includes important provisions to lower health care costs and expand coverage, building on the strong foundation of the Affordable Care Act. This legislation will lower premiums for people purchasing coverage through the ACA marketplaces and expand access to financial assistance for more middle-class families. Additionally, the American Rescue Plan includes robust financial incentives for the 14 states that have not yet implemented Medicaid expansion. The bill also works to reduce racial inequities by addressing the maternal mortality crisis, by enabling states to expand Medicaid coverage to new mothers 12 months postpartum.