More States Moving Toward Opening Covid-19 Vaccine Up To General Public - Forbes

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Topline

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday the state could see the general public become eligible for the Covid-19 in April if supply continues to increase, following governors in Alaska and Utah who have already announced plans to vaccinate anyone in the state even before the May 1 deadline President Joe Biden has imposed.

Key Facts

DeSantis said after the state lowers its eligibility age to 60, it will then lower the age to 55 “relatively soon” and “then if the supply floodgates really open, we could be in a position, sometime in April, where it’s just available and people can get it.”

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Wednesday the state would allow anyone age 18 and up to get the vaccine starting April 1, ahead of Utah’s mask mandate lifting on April 10.

Alaska was the first state to open the vaccine up to the general public, announcing Tuesday that anyone in the state over age 16 can get the shot.

Minnesota officials suggested appointments may open up to the general public by late April after Gov. Tim Walz expanded the state’s eligibility by two phases at once Tuesday.

Some localities have also opened up eligibility on their own, such as Gila County, Arizona, which allows any residents 18 and older to get vaccinated.

A number of states have taken smaller steps to expand access recently: New York expanded to anyone 60 and older, while Texas opened appointments up to 50 and older and New Jersey will significantly expand which preexisting conditions qualify for the vaccine starting March 15, among other state measures.

What To Watch For

Biden announced Thursday that his administration will direct all states, tribes and territories to open up vaccine eligibility to all American adults by May 1. The president has previously said there will be enough vaccine supply by mid-May to cover all adults.

Big Number

98.2 million. That’s how many vaccine doses have been administered in the U.S. as of Thursday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, outpacing Biden’s initial goal of achieving 100 million doses in his first 100 days.

Key Background

Covid-19 vaccinations have been quickly increasing over the past few weeks as supply has shot up, with Bloomberg reporting the U.S. administered an average of 2.23 million doses per day last week. Vaccine manufacturers Pfizer, Moderna and have all said they will deliver 300 million vaccine doses to the U.S. government by the end of July, while Johnson & Johnson, whose vaccine was only recently approved for U.S. use, will deliver 20 million doses by the end of March and 100 million in the first half of 2021. The U.S.’s infrastructure for administering the vaccine has also expanded as supply has increased: CVS announced Wednesday its pharmacies will now administer vaccines in 12 additional states, for instance, and the Biden administration has set up a number of federally-run vaccine sites across the country.