The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are recommending that states should provide the coronavirus vaccine to anyone age 65 or older, in an effort to deliver more doses to more people, NBC News reports.
The CDC notes that as of Tuesday, just 9 million of the 25 million doses of coronavirus vaccine that were sent to states have been administered, with most states still focused on vaccinating essential workers and those over the age of 75. And as part of Operation Warp Speed, about half the available doses have been withheld from states to make sure enough will be available when recipients need a second dose, which is required about three or four weeks after the first.
Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC, told Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear earlier this week that while the agency wants states to follow the CDC’s recommendations, they are not required to.
“I want to make it clear that CDC guidance should not be interpreted as regulation; rather, they are meant as recommendations,” he wrote in a letter. “It should be used in consideration for specific state and/or local regulations, but this guidance is meant to be flexible and adaptable. It is not meant to be prescriptive or interpreted as standards that can be regulated.”
Redfield added that the “CDC provides ongoing guidance to individuals, businesses, schools, and states. We have and will continue to be available for technical assistance and guidance, but we expect each jurisdiction to modify this guidance to meet their state’s needs.”
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.