White House, other top officials to get early access as vaccine shipments begin in historic effort
The first of many freezer-packed COVID-19 vaccine vials made their way to distribution sites across the United States on Sunday, as the nation’s pandemic deaths approached the horrifying new milestone of 300,000.
The rollout of the Pfizer vaccine, the first to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, ushers in the biggest vaccination effort in U.S. history — one that health officials hope the American public will embrace, even as some have voiced initial skepticism or worry. The first of two shots are expected to be given in the coming week to health care workers and nursing home residents.
Quick transport is key for the vaccine, especially since this one must be stored at extremely low temperatures — about 94 degrees below zero. Early Sunday, workers at Pfizer — dressed in fluorescent yellow clothing, hard hats and gloves — wasted no time as they packed vials into boxes. They scanned the packages and then placed them into freezer cases with dry ice. The vaccines were then taken from Pfizer’s Portage, Michigan, facility to Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, where the first cargo plane took off amid what airport officials called a “jubilant” mood.
Senior U.S. government officials, including some White House officials who work in close proximity to President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, will be offered coronavirus vaccines as soon as this week, while its public distribution is limited to front-line health workers and people in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
Doses of the newly approved vaccine from Pfizer will be made available to those who work in close quarters with the nation’s top leaders, two people familiar with the matter confirmed. They said the move was meant to prevent more COVID-19 spread in the White House, which has already suffered from several outbreaks of the virus that infected Trump and other top officials, and other critical facilities.
It was not immediately clear how many officials would be offered the vaccine initially and whether Trump or Pence would get it.
The Trump administration is undertaking the vaccination program under federal continuity of government plans, officials said.
“Senior officials across all three branches of government will receive vaccinations pursuant to continuity of government protocols established in executive policy,” said National Security Council spokesperson John Ulyot. “The American people should have confidence that they are receiving the same safe and effective vaccine as senior officials of the United States government on the advice of public health professionals and national security leadership.”
Budget toll from virus hits both Democratic, GOP-led states
No “blue state bailout” is a rallying cry for many congressional Republicans as attempts to provide more federal aid to a nation stricken by an ever-worsening coronavirus pandemic remain stuck in neutral.
Yet it’s not just Democratic states asking for help amid plunging tax revenue, rising joblessness and a stuttering economy. Plenty of Republican-led states are feeling the pain, too.
Just this past week, five GOP governors made a joint statement calling for Congress to pass a relief package to help their states deal with the fallout from the fast-spreading pandemic.
“The people in our states continue to pay a high price for Congress’ inaction,” said the statement from the Republican governors of Arkansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. “There is no more room for partisan positioning and political gamesmanship.”
Alaska, Florida and Texas are among other Republican-led states where tax revenue has taken a hit.
Sending tens of billions in unrestricted aid to state and local governments has been a key sticking point for congressional Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. The Democratic-controlled House passed a relief bill late last spring that included about $900 billion in direct aid to governments. One of the latest compromise proposals has that amount down to $160 billion, but even that appears too much for many Republican lawmakers.
