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White House officials pledged Wednesday to surge 10 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to states every week for the next three weeks — and said retired health care professionals will be authorized to administer the shots.
The federal government will also no longer maintain a vaccine stockpile and instead only keep a maximum two- to three-day supply on hand, officials said during the first briefing by President Biden’s COVID-19 response team.
“The rest moves out to states,” said Andy Slavitt, a senior adviser to the team.
The announcements — made during a virtual news conference marred by repeated technical glitches — expanded on a plan outlined on Tuesday by Biden, who said it’s “gonna allow millions of more Americans to get vaccinated sooner than previously anticipated.”
Also during Wednesday’s briefing, Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, chairwoman of Biden’s COVID-19 Equity Task Force, said the administration would be “taking an equity lens to every aspect of this virus.”
Nunez-Smith said it was “critical” that “everyone in country should have the benefit of the vaccine,” regardless of race, gender or where they live.
Latino, Native American and black people, as well as residents of rural communities, “are dying at high rates from COVID-19,” she said.
Nunez-Smith also said the administration would remove “structural barriers” to getting vaccinated, including by providing transportation and paid time off.
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