Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

The United States earns a D+ on the vaccine effort

Chris Moag, PA-C
Conditions
February 9, 2021
Share
Tweet
Share

The United States has, so far, earned a solid D+ on the vaccine effort. The high mark is not an F because people are actually being vaccinated. There are a multitude of factors that are making this already incredibly complex situation unnecessarily convoluted. From my research, which has been motivated by my company’s development of a digital tool that prioritizes and schedules vaccinations in multiple states, it has become apparent that the states and local governments are very much to blame – not just the federal government.

Among other failures, the federal government has had issues getting vaccines shipped to the right places and failed to, at the risk of the Right crying over Big Government, make a standardized, nation-wide vaccination plan.

The CDC could have given exact direction for how the vaccine was to be allocated and kept the process consistent across the country. Instead, each state has created their own vaccine priority groups. And, shockingly, some counties and even cities have their own priority groups.

On top of the fact that there are over 50 different vaccine distribution plans in this country, many of them are incredibly complex. Within phase 1 of Washington state’s plan, for instance, there are two tiers and within the second tier there are an additional four tiers. Then, within those tiers there are multiple factors to consider for order of priority – age, number of comorbidities, types of comorbidities, and industry. It is a 10-page document to explain who should be vaccinated in phase 1. It’s a logistical nightmare to do outreach to these different patient populations and in the correct order for scheduling, let alone explain this criteria to any human being without their eyes going crossed.

These vaccination priority groups have gotten so bad that there is uproar over people getting vaccinated out of their priority group. I agree that cutting in line is bad and that we should all wait our turns. But the problem is not with those individuals, it is with the system that has been set up to confuse everyone and have the vaccinators struggling to understand and follow it.

In Georgia, a medical center lost its vaccination privileges because it vaccinated teachers out of turn. Now this facility is no longer able to offer vaccines to its patients. The punishment being doled out by the department of health is not on the clinic, but on all of its patients that were relying on that clinic for a vaccine. The department of health is making it harder to end the pandemic by shutting down a perfectly good vaccination center.

I understand what state health departments are trying to do – get the people who need it most vaccinated first. And that is a noble goal, but the over-complexity has made the implementation of the actual vaccination process a nightmare.

The argument against simply vaccinating as many people as possible is, of course, that certain people are at much higher risk. I’m not arguing against giving preference to the higher risk individuals – I want my grandmother and parents vaccinated before college kids and 20-somethings. But it must be pointed out that any vaccine that goes into an arm is a good thing. That 20 year old who goes to college or parties and then goes home to see mom and dad is, once vaccinated, no longer a threat to their family – or to yours.

So yes, we must give priority to the highest risk individuals in this vaccine campaign, but not at the expense of over-complicating the vaccine rollout and potentially delaying vaccinations across the country. We must find the middle ground of vaccinating as many as possible with preference for the higher risk. Instead, we have a system that has everyone – patients, providers, and health systems – confused and wasting time trying to understand the priority groups for their locality.

There is hope that President Biden’s plan for improving the vaccine rollout will get closer to the middle ground and shorten the timeline for reaching herd immunity. His focus on the pandemic and delivering funding, reimbursement, and broadened access is promising. Hopefully, his plans for federally funded vaccination centers and a push to get vaccines into urgent cares, doctor’s offices, community health centers, and pharmacies will be the push that’s needed. And hopefully, this will be enough to drown out the confusing and conflicting prioritization plans that each state has put together and are slowing down the vaccine campaign.

Chris Moag is a physician assistant.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

After a stroke, a physician experiences true vulnerability

February 9, 2021 Kevin 1
…
Next

How COVID-19 strained the relationship between patients and health care workers

February 9, 2021 Kevin 0
…

ADVERTISEMENT

Tagged as: COVID, Infectious Disease

Post navigation

< Previous Post
After a stroke, a physician experiences true vulnerability
Next Post >
How COVID-19 strained the relationship between patients and health care workers

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • School vaccine exemptions must be for medical conditions only

    Shetal Shah, MD
  • The basics of the MMR vaccine from a pediatrician

    Roy Benaroch, MD
  • No, the HPV vaccine isn’t optional

    Chad Hayes, MD
  • A view from Canada: Defending vaccine passports

    Bryan Thomas and Colleen M. Flood
  • Major medical groups back mandatory COVID vaccine for health care workers

    Molly Walker
  • Novavax may be able to provide equitable access to another vaccine alternative

    Vibhav Prabhakar, Tejas Sekhar, and Divya Srinivasan

More in Conditions

  • Clinical ghosts and why they haunt our exam rooms

    Kara Wada, MD
  • High blood pressure’s hidden impact on kidney health in older adults

    Edmond Kubi Appiah, MPH
  • How declining MMR vaccination rates put future generations at risk

    Ambika Sharma, Onyi Oligbo, and Katrina Green, MD
  • How one unforgettable ER patient taught a nurse about resilience

    Kristen Cline, BSN, RN
  • Why regular exercise is the best prescription for lifelong health

    George F. Smith, MD
  • When the weight won’t budge: the hidden physiology of grief, stress, and set point

    Sarah White, APRN
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why specialist pain clinics and addiction treatment services require strong primary care

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why peer support can save lives in high-pressure medical careers

      Maire Daugharty, MD | Conditions
    • When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

      Ralph Messo, DO | Physician
    • Addressing menstrual health inequities in adolescents

      Callia Georgoulis | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • The shocking risk every smart student faces when applying to medical school

      Curtis G. Graham, MD | Physician
    • Clinical ghosts and why they haunt our exam rooms

      Kara Wada, MD | Conditions
    • High blood pressure’s hidden impact on kidney health in older adults

      Edmond Kubi Appiah, MPH | Conditions
    • Deep transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How declining MMR vaccination rates put future generations at risk

      Ambika Sharma, Onyi Oligbo, and Katrina Green, MD | Conditions
    • The physician who turned burnout into a mission for change

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 5 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why specialist pain clinics and addiction treatment services require strong primary care

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why peer support can save lives in high-pressure medical careers

      Maire Daugharty, MD | Conditions
    • When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

      Ralph Messo, DO | Physician
    • Addressing menstrual health inequities in adolescents

      Callia Georgoulis | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • The shocking risk every smart student faces when applying to medical school

      Curtis G. Graham, MD | Physician
    • Clinical ghosts and why they haunt our exam rooms

      Kara Wada, MD | Conditions
    • High blood pressure’s hidden impact on kidney health in older adults

      Edmond Kubi Appiah, MPH | Conditions
    • Deep transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How declining MMR vaccination rates put future generations at risk

      Ambika Sharma, Onyi Oligbo, and Katrina Green, MD | Conditions
    • The physician who turned burnout into a mission for change

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

The United States earns a D+ on the vaccine effort
5 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...