Millions of vaccines “still on a shelf” are useless. Biden’s success was getting those shots into arms.
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Biden and his aides detailed the latest phase of his pandemic response this week as domestic demand for vaccinations dries up and inoculations slide.
The U.S. is now giving an average of 2.13 million shots a day, down from 3.37 million about three weeks ago.
And on Tuesday, which has the lowest shots of any day of the week, fewer than a million were given for the first time since February.
In response, Biden is altering his strategy. The administration announced this week that it would concentrate more on smaller clinics and mobile sites in rural areas, while planning to wind down mass-vaccination sites.
The low-hanging fruit in the U.S. vaccine campaign is gone, and the modesty of Biden’s latest goal reflects the challenge: He has pledged about another 100 million shots in the next 60 days.
That’s the same pace as his first 100 million, when vaccines were at a premium, but roughly half the pace of his second 100 million.
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Biden’s challenge would be the envy of nearly every other country — a surplus of shots and a shortage of arms.
Across the U.S., 57% of adults have received at least one dose. Biden hopes to hit 70% by July.
A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Thursday found that 9% of respondents in April hadn’t gotten the vaccine but still planned to as soon as possible, down from 30% a month earlier.
Another 15% said they’d wait and see, while 19% said they would never get it or would do so only if required.
Millions of vaccines “still on a shelf” are useless. Biden’s success was getting those shots into arms.
~
Biden and his aides detailed the latest phase of his pandemic response this week as domestic demand for vaccinations dries up and inoculations slide.
The U.S. is now giving an average of 2.13 million shots a day, down from 3.37 million about three weeks ago.
And on Tuesday, which has the lowest shots of any day of the week, fewer than a million were given for the first time since February.
In response, Biden is altering his strategy. The administration announced this week that it would concentrate more on smaller clinics and mobile sites in rural areas, while planning to wind down mass-vaccination sites.
The low-hanging fruit in the U.S. vaccine campaign is gone, and the modesty of Biden’s latest goal reflects the challenge: He has pledged about another 100 million shots in the next 60 days.
That’s the same pace as his first 100 million, when vaccines were at a premium, but roughly half the pace of his second 100 million.
✁
Biden’s challenge would be the envy of nearly every other country — a surplus of shots and a shortage of arms.
Across the U.S., 57% of adults have received at least one dose. Biden hopes to hit 70% by July.
A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Thursday found that 9% of respondents in April hadn’t gotten the vaccine but still planned to as soon as possible, down from 30% a month earlier.
Another 15% said they’d wait and see, while 19% said they would never get it or would do so only if required.
~
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-06/biden-s-vaccine-path-gets-tougher-as-tempo-of-shots-slows-by-37