There seems to be hopes of an increase in Covid-19 vaccine behavior under a new policy to release the second dose held in reserve – with the revelation that these doses have already been released.
The Trump administration’s chief executive told CNN on Friday that when the administration announced it would be releasing reserved doses last week, many of these reservations were leaked to the the system started last year as production ramped up.
The announcement appears to contradict what the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services announced on Jan. 12 at the preparatory meeting of Operation Warp Speed, where he said the administration would “drop all provision for order by states, rather than keep second doses as a reserve.”
The official who spoke to CNN pushed back on a report that the second dose supply was “tired,” instead identifying the reserve as a rolling supply and refilling with new production.
The source confirmed that supply would continue to benefit from the extra doses already in circulation – but acknowledged that this meant that there would be no sudden increase in distribution numbers, as many had to believe.
Michael J. Pratt, chief communications officer for Operation Warp Speed, also denied the notion that the reserve was “tired” in a statement to CNN.
“This week, nearly 13 million total doses were given to states to prescribe, millions more than other weeks, as the reserve of second doses is fully available for prescription prescribing,” Pratt said. states have yet to make a full order in terms of their order caps.As stated this week, we have now moved to the point where the total amount released to OWS available for prescribing, first to cover second doses, second to give additional first doses. ”
The news shocked officials and angered in at least one state.
“I want answers from the Trump Administration. I am shocked and horrified that they have come up with an idea that they could not deliver, with such a big impact, ”Oregon Gov. Kate Brown tweeted on Friday. “It’s a national deception. Oregon seniors, teachers, were all of us, under a promise that the Oregon portion of the federal reserve of vaccines would be released. “
Oregon’s health director wrote a letter to HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Thursday, asking him to reconcile his statement last week about “releasing all supplies” with this announcement.
CNN received a letter written by Oregon Director of Health Patrick Allen, in which he reported on a call by Brown and Operation Warp Speed Chief Operating Officer Gen. Gustave Perna Thursday.
“During that call, he told us that there are no sources of doses, and we are already getting full satisfaction of vaccines,” Allen wrote. “If true, this is very upsetting, and puts our plans to expand eligibility at great risk. These plans were made in reliance on your statement of ‘dropping your full supply’ as a backup If this information is correct, we will not be able to start vaccinating our vulnerable elders on 23 January, as expected. “
CNN also argued with vaccine manufacturers Pfizer and Moderna, as well as circulation partner Moderna McKesson and received no response.
The announcement that second doses were not strictly kept in reserve was first reported by the Washington Post, which also reported that the Trump administration shifted their strategy to start tapping into second doses in the late afternoon. last year.
“We hear that there is no collection of vaccines for the second dose but that it was more of a ‘paper exercise,'” said Dr. Marcus Plescia, Chief Medical Officer for the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers. “The stock seems to be on paper, they were monitoring the expected need but not holding back yield.”
The bottom line, Plescia said, is that the vaccine will be feared for at least another few weeks.
“I think the original message was lost in far too many,” said Plescia. “In order to have a stronger supply, we need to be clear to the public that access to vaccination is limited. “
CNN’s Jacqueline Howard, Nadia Kounang and John Bonifield contributed to this report.