From Military.com:
“Overseas
Military Dependents Face Longer Vaccine Wait After Millions of Doses Ruined”
U.S. troops and
military families stationed abroad should have access to at least one dose of a
COVID-19 vaccine by mid-May, Pentagon officials said Thursday. The Defense
Department is working through supply chain challenges presented late last month
when 15 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the single-dose
immunization that the department planned to use overseas along with the Moderna
vaccine, were ruined in manufacturing. While the DoD plans to expand
eligibility for the vaccine to all beneficiaries by April 19, in line with the
nationwide expansion announced earlier this week by President Joe Biden, the
department is working to ensure that overseas personnel and family members will
have access to at least one dose in May. According to Lt. Gen. Ronald Place,
director of the Defense Health Agency, the DoD has, by proportion, shipped more
vaccine doses to overseas locations than within the United States -- 14% of its
doses to a population that makes up 7% of those eligible under the DoD. But in
many locations, vaccinations continue to be available only to high-priority
groups, and appointments for second doses have been canceled.
During a press
conference Thursday, Place and service medical officials sought to validate the
frustrations over vaccine distribution that have been expressed by military
personnel, family members and civilians stationed across Europe, Africa and
Asia. "If you're a service member stationed overseas or a family member
likewise stationed overseas, and you haven't received a vaccine, and you don't
know when you'll be able to, these numbers mean nothing," Place said. Even
before the mishap at a Baltimore production facility, military families were
frustrated by the distribution process to overseas locations. Last month, they
began reaching out to their congressional representatives for answers on the
slow pace of U.S. vaccine distribution in Europe and elsewhere. Officials at
Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany acknowledged that they were trying
to make sure everyone who had received a first dose of Moderna got a second
dose within the recommended 42-day window. Landstuhl assured patients that it
would prioritize those who had received one dose in the event of further
delays. "We understand the frustration many in our community are
facing," officials wrote this week on Landstuhl's Facebook page.
"While we've been hesitant to make predictions on future vaccine
deliveries we are confident that vaccine allocations to Europe will increase
throughout April."
Place said the
overseas community was slated to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and
the loss of the doses during a mix-up at a Baltimore plant "affected the
DoD allocations, as is true for all U.S. jurisdictions." The Baltimore
facility, operated by Emergent BioSolutions, accidentally mixed ingredients of
the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson shots, and all of them had to be
destroyed. The Biden administration subsequently put Johnson & Johnson in
charge of the plant, which also will no longer make the AstraZeneca vaccine. Meanwhile,
the DoD is "actively exploring other means to offset this temporary
shortage," Place said.
To date, the
DoD has administered roughly 2.25 million vaccines, he said, and it plans to
open up eligibility for vaccinations to all military personnel and
beneficiaries beginning April 19. He added, however, that even when eligibility
opens up, those who had priority earlier and declined to get the vaccine will
have priority should they decide they want one. In Europe and Africa, roughly
37,000 of 150,000 eligible Army personnel and family members have received at
least one dose, while 17,000 have been fully vaccinated, according to Army Maj.
Gen. Jill Faris, Interim G-3/5/7 for U.S. Army Medical Command. Faris added
that the Army should be able to vaccinate 100,000 people "in the coming
weeks." According to Rear Adm. Gayle Shaffer, the Navy's deputy surgeon
general, 50% of eligible sailors, Marines, beneficiaries and civilian employees
across Europe have been vaccinated.
Roughly 35% of
the 53,000 eligible Air Force personnel in Europe have received at least
one dose, and 22% have been fully vaccinated. In the Pacific, 26% of 109,000
eligible airmen and dependents have received at least one dose, while 20% have
been fully vaccinated, according to Maj. Gen. Robert Miller, the Air Force's
deputy surgeon general.
According to
service officials, the Department of the Navy has vaccinated roughly 35%
of its active forces, including Marines, and the Air Force has administered at
least one dose to 11.1% of its force and fully vaccinated 7.2%.
Faris said the Army
has administered 688,000 doses. She declined to say what percent of the force
has been vaccinated. Officials said that acceptance rates are on the rise as
those who took a "wait and see" attitude are now seeking the vaccine.
"There has been an overall trend from more people accepting the vaccine.
It appears the educational efforts are working," Miller said.
Since the
beginning of the pandemic, the DoD has logged more than 271,000 cases of
COVID-19, including 177,359 among U.S. service members. More than 330 people,
including troops, civilians, contractors and family members, have died.
^ It seems the
US Military is following the poor example of the EU rather than the American
example with regards to its vaccine roll-out. US Soldiers, Contractors and
their families deserve to receive the Covid Vaccine NOW and not be at the bottom
of the vaccination list. ^
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