Shots are reaching nursing home residents at an even slower pace than others first in line, even though they are most at risk of dying of the virus.
By OMRI NAHMIAS, REUTERSUpdated: MARCH 9, 2021 17:19Sandra Lindsay, a nurse at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, is inoculated with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine by Dr. Michelle Chester from Northwell Health at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York, US, December 14, 2020.(photo credit: MARK LENNIHAN/POOL VIA REUTERS)
WASHINGTON - Only about 2.8 million Americans had received a COVID-19 vaccine as of Friday – mostly front-line healthcare workers, as well as staff and residents of nursing facilities – putting the United States far short of the government’s target to vaccinate 20 million people in December.Shots are reaching nursing home residents at an even slower pace than others first in line, even though they are most at risk of dying of the virus.Some 170,000 people in long-term care facilities have received a shot as of December 30, although 2.2 million doses have been distributed for residents, according to data released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).About 14 million doses of Pfizer’s and Moderna’s vaccines have been distributed to states so far, federal officials told reporters on Wednesday, shy of the goal to ship 20 million doses this month.As late as early December, officials maintained they would have 40 million doses available by the end of the month, enough to vaccinate 20 million Americans with a two-dose regimen.“The rapid availability and distribution of so many doses – with 20 million first doses allocated for distribution just 18 days after the first vaccine was granted emergency use authorization – is a testament to the success of Operation Warp Speed [OWS],” a US Health and Human Services Department spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday.Doses that have been allocated but not distributed will be shipped this month.Even as the number of doses distributed neared the goal of reaching 20 million people, the pace of actual vaccinations has been far slower than anticipated, according to CDC data.US Sen. Mitt Romney on Friday urged the US government to immediately enlist veterinarians, combat medics and others in an all-out national campaign to administer coronavirus vaccinations and slow a surging rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths.The Utah Republican, who ran unsuccessfully for president as his party’s nominee in 2012, called for greater action as the administration of US President Donald Trump fell far short of its goal to vaccinate 20 million Americans with the first of two required doses by the end of 2020.DR. GERALD T. KEUSCH is a professor of medicine and international health at Boston University’s School of Medicine and Public Health, an associate director of the university’s National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratory Institute and director of the Collaborative Core.He told The Jerusalem Post that the federal government should make vaccination a priority and quickly partner with the states and local governments and provide central support.He said that the administration of President-elect Joe Biden and its COVID task force “has highly experienced and knowledgeable people who know what needs to be done. Even so, they will be running uphill for some time, and a sizable portion of the population don’t believe COVID is real – or if they do, they also believe Trump has done everything possible that could have been done.“When OWS came along, their goal was to increase production of several vaccines, even before the proof of efficacy and safety was available,” Keusch said. “But their vision did not extend out beyond producing and distributing doses to the states, and they failed to lead and prepare for that last mile – getting it into people.“It was typical of the administration,” he said. “Take on little responsibility and order the states to be responsible, even though most of the states didn’t have the resources or the expertise to respond.”When asked how long he estimated it would take to get herd immunity in the US, Keusch said that, “first, it is not clear how many people need to be immune to diminish virus spread in the community. There are guesses – 70% being a popular one now – but it could easily be less or more. That means that close to two-thirds of the US needs to be immunized if the lower level is effective.“But even if production and distribution were perfect, the degree of vaccine hesitancy added on to the anti-vaxxer population poses a considerable threat,” he said. “If people don’t come forward (and under most circumstances there will not be mandates except perhaps for healthcare personnel or a few other categories), having vaccines sitting in a freezer, a refrigerator or on a shelf accomplishes nothing.”He estimated that given the rough start, “it is hard to see a major impact on virus transmission in the community before the summer, even if the Biden administration can change the message and the dialog quickly – and the action and the support follow on.“The damage has been done and it is not correctable in the short term,” he said.KEUSCH ALSO addressed the rapid pace of the vaccination process in Israel: “Israel has been far more efficient in administering COVID vaccine than most other countries, even those of similar size and population, with more than 10% of the population receiving the vaccine by January 1, 2021,” he said.“Compared to the US, for example, Israel has had consistent public health messaging from the government leadership, including the prime minister, to wear a mask when outside and maintain social distancing, and efforts to combat misinformation,” he continued.“In the case of vaccine administration, it is the strong support of the government to organize vaccine distribution down to the actual vaccination of people, the national mandate for universal health insurance to support it, and the modern information systems of the health services to track what is happening that underlie this initial success, compared to the relative failure in the US.”
