Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
AHA Implores Trump Administration To Take Larger Role In Vaccine Rollout
FierceHealthcare: AHA Presses For Changes To COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout And For HHS To Take Larger Role
The American Hospital Association is imploring the Trump administration to make several moves aimed at improving the disparate rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which in some cases has overwhelmed facilities. The association sent a letter Thursday to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar calling for more transparency and support for the distribution of COVID-19 vaccine doses. The letter comes as frustrations are boiling over in hospitals that are shouldering both the rollout and massive surges of the virus. (King, 1/7)
NPR: Fauci: U.S. Needs More Time To 'Catch Up' On Vaccine Rollout
Dr. Anthony Fauci — head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health, who will be President-elect Joe Biden's chief medical adviser — said Thursday that the initial rollout of COVID-19 vaccines has been slow because it came during the holiday period. "I think it would be fair to just observe what happens in the next couple of weeks. If we don't catch up on what the original goal was, then we really need to make some changes about what we're doing," he said in an interview with NPR's Morning Edition. (King, 1/7)
Axios: Why Some Experts Want To Relax Vaccine Prioritization
Some political leaders and public health experts are rethinking strict prioritization for coronavirus vaccines, suggesting that it might make more sense to simply try to administer as many doses as possible as quickly as possible. Why it matters: Especially while supplies are still limited, there's an inherent tension between trying to focus first on the people most at risk from the virus — including those most likely to spread it — and getting shots into arms at maximum speed. (Owens, 1/8)
In related news —
Politico: 8 Democratic Governors Demand HHS Release More Vaccine Doses
The Democratic governors of eight states — including California, New York and Michigan — are demanding that federal health officials release doses of Covid-19 vaccines currently being held back to ensure people who got their first dose can get their second. The federal government has held back doses equal to the amount it has shipped out, to ensure that everyone who is vaccinated completes the recommended two-shot sequence. But with a new, likely more transmissible coronavirus strain now circulating, public health experts have urged state and federal authorities to pick up the pace of vaccination. (Lim, 1/7)
CNN: Feds Overpromised And Underdelivered On Coronavirus Vaccines, State Health Officials Say
The federal government "overpromised and underdelivered" on coronavirus vaccine expectations, leaving states understaffed and without enough money to immunize their residents quickly, state health officials said Thursday. (Thomas and Langmaid, 1/7)
Politico: Scott Demands Federal Probe Of Florida's Vaccine Distribution
Sen. Rick Scott on Thursday called for a congressional investigation into what he called “vaccine distribution mismanagement,” following multiple reports that a West Palm Beach nursing home and assisted-living facility steered highly sought after vaccine shots to its board members and major donors. Gov. Ron DeSantis already has been under fire for the bumpy rollout of vaccinations in Florida due to the Republican governor’s insistence that those 65 or older be among the first to get inoculated with one of the Covid-19 vaccines. The state has roughly 4.4 million older residents. (Fineout and Sarkissian, 1/7)
KHN: KHN On The Air This Week
KHN Editor-in-Chief Elisabeth Rosenthal discussed issues with the U.S. rollout of the covid-19 vaccines with NPR’s “Weekend Edition” and MSNBC’s “The Week With Joshua Johnson” on Jan. 3. KHN chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner discussed covid’s impact on current politics with WAMU’s “1A” on Dec. 31, and more. (1/8)
KHN: As The Vulnerable Wait, Some Political Leaders’ Spouses Get Covid Vaccines
With supplies of covid-19 vaccines scarce, a federal advisory panel recommends first putting shots into the arms of health care workers, who keep the nation’s medical system running, and long-term care residents most likely to die from the coronavirus. Nowhere on the list of prioritized recipients are public officials’ spouses. (Ungar, 1/8)
Also —
Modern Healthcare: Brigham President Stepping Down After Moderna Controversy
The president of Brigham Health will step down March 1 after more than a decade in the role following criticism over a perceived conflict of interest with Moderna. Dr. Elizabeth "Betsy" Nabel resigned from the drugmaker's board in July shortly after Brigham announced its flagship Brigham and Women's Hospital was a clinical research site in the phase 3 trial for Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine. Nabel didn't cite the kerfuffle in an email to colleagues explaining her upcoming departure. Instead, she wrote that she had only intended to occupy the role for a decade—which she hit in January 2020—and later extended that to the end of calendar 2020. (Bannow, 1/7)
