Pentagon may send troops to help with vaccines, expanding federal role

© Jim Wilson / The New York Times
A vaccination site in Rohnert Park, Calif., Wednesday. The Federal Emergency Management Agency hopes to set up around 100 vaccination sites across the country by next month.

WASHINGTON – Pentagon plans to send active-duty troops to large federally-run coronavirus vaccination centers, a major departure for the department and the first significant sign that the Biden administration is set to take more control over a program that states find it difficult to manage.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency hopes to set up about 100 vaccination sites across the country as early as next month, and on Wednesday evening asked the Pentagon to send aid to support the effort. The sites and the use of the military within them would require the approval of state governments.

While many state governors have turned to their National Guard units to help with the mass effort to vaccinate Americans and overcome the more contagious variants of the coronavirus, the role of the Pentagon has been largely in them. backstage, providing logistical assistance.

During his confirmation hearings last week, Lloyd J. Austin III, the Secretary of Defense, said he would increase military support to deal with the pandemic. On Thursday, Max Rose, Mr Austin’s senior advisor on Covid-19, said his first topic of conversation in meetings with senior executives made this the “No. 1 priority. “

Sending troops to help set up sites, help with logistics and even launch gunfire is something the Defense Department “is actively considering,” Rose said. He declined to provide details, saying Pentagon officials would carefully consider FEMA’s request.

“We will obviously take inspiration from this request,” said John F. Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary, noting that after a review it would most likely be filled with more National Guard soldiers from the reserve. and active service.

“I would say we’re talking about days, certainly not weeks, to get that source,” Kirby said. “We know there is an emergency.”

The military is likely to provide thousands of troops over the next several months, much like the mobilization the Trump administration assembled a few years ago to complete law enforcement on the border with Mexico.

Many states and territories have large vaccination sites in place, and more than half use members of the National Guard to give injections, bringing in doctors, nurses, medics and other skilled people. in injections. FEMA, an agency of the Department of Homeland Security, has already told six states, two territories and Washington, DC, it will spend $ 1 billion on immunization measures, including community vaccination sites.

It was not immediately clear where the vaccines for the new federal sites would come from; they would most likely come from the offer already given to individual states and territories. Most states have not failed to administer the vaccine given to them.

Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, a Republican, has previously said he doesn’t want “FEMA camps” in his state. “It’s not necessary in Florida,” he told reporters last week after the Biden administration released its plan to tackle the pandemic, including FEMA sites. “All we need is more vaccine.

The Trump administration has largely preferred that states manage pandemic efforts, letting governors acquire protective gear for healthcare workers and handle testing, contact tracing and other aspects of the response. . While he has made deals with pharmaceutical companies to accelerate vaccine development and offered advice on who to prioritize to receive vaccines, he has largely left the management of their supplies to states.

State governments have faced a number of challenges in getting their vaccines up to speed, including resistance from some healthcare and nursing home workers and other members of priority groups to the vaccine, and difficulties in medical centers to manage their supplies.

The Biden administration has set itself a goal of getting more Americans vaccinated quickly, but it is not clear that there will be enough supply if it is successful in speeding up the logistics system, especially with many Americans who are now awaiting a second vaccine.

The federal government had reimbursed states – many of which were battling steep cuts in tax revenue – for just 75% of the National Guard’s costs associated with fighting coronaviruses. The administration will increase this percentage to 100 percent, including for the support needed to distribute and administer the vaccines, until the end of September.

Zolan Kanno-Youngs contributed reporting.