Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
50 States, All Adults: Everyone 16 Or Older Can Now Get A Covid Shot
CBS News: All U.S. Adults Now Eligible For COVID-19 Vaccine: How To Find A Shot
American adults in all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are now eligible for the coronavirus vaccine as of Monday, meeting President Biden's goal of April 19 eligibility. Mr. Biden set the April 19 goal earlier this month, although the vast majority of states had already expanded eligibility to all adults earlier than that. The U.S. is nearing Mr. Biden's updated goal of providing 200 million shots by his 100th day in office, despite the federal government's decision to pause the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after a small number of women who had received the shot developed a rare blood clot disorder. Dr. Anthony Fauci told CBS News' "Face the Nation" on Sunday that he expects a decision on whether to resume that particular vaccine by Friday. (Watson, 4/19)
The New York Times: All U.S. States Have Met Biden's Vaccine Expansion Deadline
All adults in every U.S. state, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico are now eligible for a Covid-19 vaccine, meeting the April 19 deadline that President Biden set two weeks ago. “For months I’ve been telling Americans to get vaccinated when it’s your turn. Well, it’s your turn, now,” Mr. Biden said Sunday on a program called “Roll Up Your Sleeves” on NBC. “It’s free. It’s convenient and it’s the most important thing you can do to protect yourself from Covid-19.” (Anthes, Ngo and Sullivan, 4/19)
NBC News: Map: These States Are Opening Up Vaccinations To People From Out Of State
Is your Covid-19 vaccination just across state lines? In addition to making every adult eligible for the shots Monday, several states lifted their residency requirements, meaning that providers will vaccinate even nonresidents. As of Monday, 18 states and one territory, including California, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Puerto Rico, no longer have residency requirements. Check the map below to see if your state is on the list. (Chiwaya, 4/19)
Roll Call: White House Fears Bumpy Rollout Deterring People From Vaccine Shots
Top White House health officials are concerned that the COVID-19 vaccination campaign’s slow rollout early on could be deterring people from getting their first shots and are emphasizing that every American adult is now eligible for a vaccine. “Things are about to get a whole lot easier,” Andy Slavitt, White House senior adviser on COVID-19, said Monday. (Kopp, 4/19)
AP: AP Source: Guantanamo Prisoners Now Getting COVID-19 Vaccine
Prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention center can now begin getting the COVID-19 vaccine, a senior defense official told The Associated Press on Monday, months after a plan to inoculate them was scuttled over outrage that many Americans weren’t eligible to receive the shots. The new timing coincides with President Joe Biden’s deadline for states to make the vaccines more widely available across the U.S. Beginning Monday, anyone 16 and older qualifies to sign up and get in a virtual line to be vaccinated. (Fox, 4/19)
