Dr. Anthony Fauci said on the “Today” show Friday morning that the United States needs to do better in distributing the COVID-19 vaccine to the public.
What’s happening?
Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told the “Today” show that the U.S. COVID-19 vaccination rollout “has not worked as smoothly as possible,” and “we have to do better.”
Fauci said there will be more coordination once President-elect Joe Biden takes office, which could improve distribution.
- “There will be a greater degree of coordination, interaction and support on the part of the federal government interacting with the states. … I think that’s what we’re going to see more of, where states will have help in regard to resources, but also more of a general, coordinated plan about how to do this.”
Why the slow down?
Fauci said the vaccine rollout has gone slowly because officials were never meant to adhere to a prioritization guideline.
- “If you have a dose, give it,” he said.
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That said, Fauci said that he does see Biden’s team administering 100 million doses in 100 days.
- “I strongly believe that is doable.”
- “If we get about 70% to 85% of the people in the country vaccinated, we likely will get to that umbrella of herd immunity, that you’ll start to see a serious turnaround of infection. … But it is really going to be dependent on the uptake of vaccines. … We really want the overwhelming majority of the country to be vaccinated.”