Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Iowa Prisoners Given Too Much Vaccine; House Calls Begin In Dallas
Des Moines Register: Iowa Prison Staff Gives Overdoses Of COVID-19 Vaccine To 77 Inmates
Staff from the Iowa Department of Corrections incorrectly gave 77 inmates overdoses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, the department confirmed to the Des Moines Register. The incident happened Tuesday at the state maximum-security prison at Fort Madison, according to Cord Overton, a spokesperson for the department. Overton did not say how much extra vaccine each inmate was given. (May Sahouri and Leys, 4/21)
Dallas Morning News: Dallas Kicks Off First In-Home COVID Vaccination Program For Homebound Seniors
The program is the next step in the goal to vaccinate vulnerable residents and comes three months after Dallas County’s vaccine hub opened at Fair Park in South Dallas. Initial efforts to inoculate Black and Latino people in the county had fallen short, complicated by transportation issues and internet access because of an online registration system. Now, as doses have become more widely available and an increasing number of people are getting inoculated, the city and county have streamlined the vaccination process. (Cooper, 4/21)
Anchorage Daily News: Alaska Will Have Enough COVID-19 Vaccine For Every Eligible Resident By The End Of May, Health Officials Say
Alaska will soon have enough COVID-19 vaccine available in the state for every eligible resident, the state’s top doctor said Wednesday. “By the end of May, we will have enough vaccine for every Alaskan to get vaccinated who’s 16 and above,” Dr. Anne Zink, the state’s chief medical officer said during a public information call. That estimate is based on how much vaccine the state has already received, as well as projected allocation numbers for May, she said. Data available from the state shows that Alaska will have received just over 508,000 first doses of vaccine by the end of April. (Berman, 4/21)
The Washington Post: New Yorkers Can Get Vaccinated Under The Natural History Museum’s Iconic — Now Bandaged — Blue Whale
Starting Friday, New York’s American Museum of Natural History will open a mass vaccination site, allowing New Yorkers to register to get a jab under the institution’s iconic 94-foot-long model of a blue whale. (Firozi, 4/20)
Des Moines Register: Gov. Kim Reynolds Implores Unvaccinated Iowans To Take COVID Vaccine
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said Wednesday that "vaccine hesitancy is beginning to become a real factor" in Iowa and across the country. The governor noted during her weekly press conference that 43 of Iowa's 99 counties have declined some or all of next week's COVID-19 vaccine allocation due to decreasing demand for the shots. The Republican governor implored Iowans to take the vaccine, as she did. (Coltrain and Richardson, 4/21)
Philadelphia Inquirer: More Coronavirus Vaccinations Are Key To Fully Reopening Pennsylvania And New Jersey, Governors Say
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said Wednesday that he would like to see more Pennsylvanians get vaccinated against the coronavirus, saying inoculations are key to fully reopening the state and avoiding the spread of virus variants. “If you haven’t made an appointment, make one,” said the governor, who received his first dose Monday. “Come in. There are openings.” (McCarthy, McDaniel and Steele, 4/21)
Los Angeles Times: Not All Asian Americans Are Being Vaccinated At High Rates. A Chinatown Clinic Shows Why
Before the pandemic, Sissy Trinh ran after-school programs as founder and executive director of the Chinatown-based youth organization Southeast Asian Community Alliance. But since last year, the organization of five people pivoted to COVID-19 relief, delivering food and other resources to vulnerable residents in Chinatown and Lincoln Heights. She soon realized that existing government programs weren’t accessible to the families her group served: those with language and technology barriers. (Tseng, 4/21)
KHN: California And Texas Took Different Routes To Vaccination. Who’s Ahead?
California and Texas, the country’s two most populous states, have taken radically different approaches to the pandemic and the vaccination campaign to end it. California has trumpeted its reliance on science and policies it says are aimed at improving social equity. Texas state officials have emphasized individual rights and protecting the economy, often ignoring public health warnings but encouraging vaccination — while calling it a personal choice. (Almendrala and West, 4/22)
