Vaccine distribution plan to be tested in California, Florida, North Dakota, Minnesota.
After months of remaining vague about its plans to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine, the Trump administration is quietly piloting distribution working groups, CQ Roll Call has learned.
The plan, which is not yet public, was confirmed by four state health departments.
Federal officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Pentagon and the administration's Operation Warp Speed initiative plan to conduct site visits and develop “model approaches” for other states based on what they learn, according to a CDC description of the project shared exclusively with CQ Roll Call. The states involved include California, Florida, North Dakota and Minnesota.
The start of vaccine distribution plans come amid calls by public health experts for a national strategy. Distributing any authorized vaccines effectively will be crucial to stemming the coronavirus pandemic. Normal life can’t begin to resume in the United States until a large proportion of residents are immune.
Public health advocates say they’re worried that U.S. immunization could resemble the dysfunction of state-by-state testing standards or the chaotic distribution of personal protective equipment.
A plan is needed to make the vaccine widely available, including to people who lack insurance, and convince skeptics to trust vaccines tested with unprecedented speed that may not have full Food and Drug Administration approval. The logistics of shipping and providing vaccines under precise conditions, managing potential supply chain shortages, monitoring patients, and ensuring equity will be complicated.
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