Why U.S. Vaccinations Started Slow And What We Know About The New Coronavirus Variant
Consider This from NPR
NPR
4.2 • 6.2K Ratings
🗓️ 5 January 2021
⏱️ 12 minutes
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Summary
The federal government has given states control over distribution plans which has led to different systems with differing levels of success. In one Florida county, Julie Glenn of member station WGCU reports on the haphazard vaccine rollout that has led elderly residents to camp out in tents to get their first shot.
As vaccinations lag behind schedule, a new, more contagious variant of the coronavirus is spreading in many countries, including the U.S. The new variant isn't thought to be more deadly, and scientists believe the vaccines currently being administered will work against it. Additional good news is that masks and social distancing will still slow the spread of the new variant.
Additional reporting this episode from NPR's Allison Aubrey, who's reported on the slow start to vaccinations, and from NPR's Michaeleen Doucleff, who's reported on the new coronavirus variant. Reporting on the vaccine rollout at the state level came from Will Stone in Seattle, Nashville Public Radio's Blake Farmer, and WBUR's Martha Bebinger.
In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The number was supposed to be 20 million. 20 million Americans vaccinated by the end of 2020. |
| 0:06.5 | We anticipate having about 40 million doses, so enough to cover somewhere between 15 and 20 million individuals. |
| 0:15.6 | That's a man to cone of the CDC. You might remember her prediction from an episode from early last month. |
| 0:21.4 | But today, according to the CDC, only around 5 million people have actually been vaccinated. |
| 0:27.7 | There's numerous factors. And here's what I have confidence in. Every day, everybody gets better. |
| 0:34.4 | US Army General Gus Perna, one of the leaders of Operation Warp Speed, tried to explain the slow start. |
| 0:41.1 | There's two holidays. There's been three major snowstorms. There is everybody working through, |
| 0:48.9 | you know, how to do the notification, how to make sure we're ministering at the right way. |
| 0:53.2 | This is a huge puzzle. Different states and counties are trying out different systems for distribution |
| 1:00.3 | with different levels of success. In some places, health workers have reported throwing away vaccine |
| 1:06.8 | doses that went bad before they could be given to eligible people. Other states are giving out doses |
| 1:12.4 | to anyone if the doses they have in stock are close to spoiling. In Tennessee, for instance, |
| 1:17.9 | some health departments keep waiting list of people who could be on site in 30 minutes. The other |
| 1:23.6 | issue is that the simple process of giving the shot takes longer than expected. There are intake |
| 1:29.8 | questions before and a 15-minute period of monitoring after to make sure you don't feel serious side |
| 1:35.5 | effects. That's caused a much more of a delay that I would have anticipated. Dr. Asif Merchant, a |
| 1:41.0 | nursing home medical director near Boston, says it took half an hour to get his vaccine, |
| 1:46.1 | and there just aren't enough health care workers to move things faster. |
| 1:49.8 | I think when it comes to general public, that is going to be an even bigger problem. We really need |
| 1:56.8 | all hands-on-deck care. Consider this. Vaccine distribution is behind schedule and a new |
| 2:03.7 | coronavirus variant, one that's more contagious, threatens to spread infections faster than before. |
| 2:09.5 | From NPR, Amadi Cornish, it's Tuesday, January 5th. |
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