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“Our healthcare professionals are overwhelmed by the surge in COVID-19 cases. Lives are at stake, and we ask that you stay home unless absolutely necessary … save a life,” says the tweet.
Since the start of the pandemic, more than 388,000 people have died from Covid-19, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. And on Thursday, the United States recorded its 10th consecutive day of more than 200,000 infections.
As frontline workers struggle to keep patients alive and the intensive care wings of hospitals up and running, the success of the vaccine rollout remains inconsistent.
Gaps in vaccine distribution
At least one state, however, claims its distribution is ahead of the game.
West Virginia Governor Jim Justice told CNN that since Monday, every dose of vaccine the state receives has been administered or assigned to be administered within about a day. The state leads the country in terms of first doses administered per capita, according to CDC data, nearly doubling the national rate.
“We absolutely did not go to the federal model,” Justice told CNN’s John King on Thursday. Instead of using chain pharmacies to administer the vaccine, the governor said the state has relied on partnerships with local pharmacies as well as the state health department and the National Guard to distribute effectively vaccines.
“It’s as simple as mud. If you can get the shots you are going to save lives,” Justice said. “We don’t have to sit down and try to develop systems or meet with committees or whatever. We had to act. We had to move.
Other states do not have the same success as West Virginia.
However, about 10% of rural hospitals in Texas have yet to receive a single dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, according to a group representing rural hospitals in the state. A CEO of a rural hospital group said some employees had to be vaccinated at a local supermarket, which had extra doses to spare.
A member of Biden’s coronavirus advisory board on Thursday warned of the new settings. Although nearly 180 million Americans would be eligible for the vaccine under this plan, he said, the supply needed to manage that number would not be reached until summer at best.
Precautions still needed
While the vaccine rollout generally gives the country long-term hope of overcoming the pandemic, the nationwide situation still requires preventive action.
In Missouri, lawmakers canceled next week’s legislative session due to the rise in Covid-19 infections.
“Due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the building, we are exercising great caution to protect members, staff and visitors by canceling the session next week. Our goal is to return to work by the next week. next week “statement from the executives of Missouri House.
Experts hope the precautions can help turn the tide of debilitating case numbers, like those seen in California.
Beds available in ICUs are at their lowest, according to the California Department of Public Health. Fewer than 1,100 intensive care beds remain statewide, a number that has been declining since the outbreak began in November.
Haley Brink, Christina Maxouris, Lauren Mascarenhas, Raja Razek, Maggie Fox, Deidre McPhillips, Cheri Mossburg, Jessica Firger and Nick Watt contributed to this report.
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