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By Reuters staff
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The United States plans to start distributing COVID-19 vaccines to pharmacies across the country earlier than expected this week, with states struggling to use their allocated supply, said senior health officials Wednesday.
The partnership with 19 drugstore chains will ultimately allow the Operation Warp Speed vaccination program to be broadcast to up to 40,000 locations across the country, Warp Speed officials said at a press conference on Wednesday. .
Pharmacies could provide a more efficient platform for vaccine distribution than hospitals, they said.
As of Tuesday morning, more than 70% of the more than 17 million doses of vaccine that have been delivered in the country since December were still in freezers, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Protection (CDC).
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar also told the press conference that states should not let recommendations to prioritize certain groups like healthcare workers slow the pace of vaccinations. .
He said states shouldn’t keep vaccines in freezers for too long to be distributed to healthcare workers and encouraged governors to bypass CDC recommendations if that can speed up inoculation.
“These are just recommendations, and they should never stand in the way of gunfire,” Azar said.
If states are struggling to distribute the vaccine, “by all means you want to open yourself up to people 70 and over or 65 and over,” he said.
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