President Joe Biden confirmed Tuesday that tens of thousands of pharmacies would begin providing Covid-19 vaccines to Americans without the need for an appointment, as part of an attempt to encourage more people to get immunized against Covid-19 by making vaccinations more convenient.
"Biden Aims to Get 70% of Adults at Least One Covid-19 Vaccine Dose by July 4. Unordered shots to be reallocated to states in need as pharmacies directed to offer walk-in vaccinations. Mr. Biden on Tuesday urged Americans to get vaccinated, and he said the administration's push was going to be more tailored: "It's going to get more granular rather than large." [1]
To Deliver Walk-In Vaccinations
The Biden administration announced that it would begin reallocating some Covid-19 vaccine doses to states with higher demand for vaccines and direct pharmacies to deliver walk-in vaccinations to reach the president's goal of vaccinating 70% of the adult population by July 4.
100 Million Shots over the Next 60 Days
President Biden said on Tuesday that he also expects 160 million U.S. adults to have received the entire course of the vaccine by that time, which he said would include administering about 100 million shots over the next 60 days. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States administered about 220 million vaccines during Mr Biden's first 100 days in office, but the rate of vaccinations has slowed in recent weeks.
56% Of Adults Had Gotten at least One Dose
As per the CDC, roughly 56% of adults in the United States had gotten at least one dose as of Monday. The new targets are part of the next step of the Biden administration's vaccination program, which will concentrate on tackling vaccine hesitancy and removing obstacles that prevent certain Americans from getting vaccines, such as not knowing where to get the vaccine or having trouble signing up.=
Vaccines to Teenagers
The administration is also planning to give vaccines to teenagers. The policy change on state allocations is meant to take into account the fact that demand is higher in certain states than elsewhere.
"Some pharmacies and clinics have already started administering coronavirus vaccinations on short notice. CVS and Walgreens now offer same-day appointments, Rite Aid started offering walk-in vaccinations "on a limited basis" last week, and some state and local health clinics have rolled out walk-in hours." [2]
40,000 Pharmacies Collaborating With Federal Government
Biden said in a speech on Tuesday that he is leading the nearly 40,000 pharmacies that obtain vaccine doses via collaboration with the federal government — including local stores and chains like CVS — to begin providing walk-in appointments this week. According to the administration, Mr. Biden has directed pharmacies in the federal vaccine program to provide walk-in shots and has directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assist with pop-up vaccination clinics and mobile units.
CVS Health Corp. and Walmart Inc. announced on Tuesday that walk-ins would be permitted at all locations. CVS and several other discount pharmacies have recently started offering same-day appointments, and other chains have also begun accepting walk-ins on a limited basis.
According to officials, Mr. Biden's new target was inspired by infectious disease experts who agree that a 70% vaccination rate would result in a significant decrease in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. According to a senior administration official, this is not the same as herd immunity, which occurs when enough Americans are immune to the virus that it can no longer spread easily across the population.
Decreasing Demand for Vaccine
Vaccine appointments are going unfilled in several jurisdictions. Due to a decline in demand, Arkansas, Mississippi, and hundreds of counties in Iowa recently reduced vaccination orders. A spokeswoman for the state's Department of Public Health said that 75,280 of the 105,300 doses provided to counties in Iowa for the week of May 10 were refused.
According to Jennifer Fulcher, director of immunization at the Mississippi Department of Health, the state did not order its complete allotment of first doses for this week.
She stated that after the state obtained the last allotment, 1,000 vaccine doses have been requested by private suppliers, but none have been ordered for the state health department's drive-through vaccination sites.
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