The United States is working to get back on track with COVID-19 vaccination efforts after winter storms across the country cancelled appointments and derailed vaccine deliveries. As of March 1, 7.7% of Americans have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. How Much Are Mass Vaccination Sites Helping? How Stadiums and Amusement Parks Are Converted Into COVID-19 Vaccination Sites Over the past week, Texas opened three such vaccination sites in Houston, Dallas, and Arlington....

One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans have been promised a light at the end of the tunnel. In aspeechon March 11, President Biden announced any adult who wants a COVID-19 vaccine will be eligible to receive one on May 1. What About Fourth of July? Does This Mean ‘Phase 1’ of Vaccination is Almost Over? Alaska leads the pack with 29.3% of anyone who may be considered Phase 1-eligible vaccinated, and D....

The government delivered another 21 million doses to states over the last week, only a slight increase from the weekly 20 million we’ve been seeing since Johnson & Johnson entered the scene at the end of February. Why 70%?While there’s still no clear percentage of the population necessary to reach herd immunity for COVID-19, 70% is a good place to start. Herd immunity refers to the protectiveness achieved when a significant portion of a population develops immunity to an infectious disease, either through vaccination or having a prior illness....

While not much has changed on the distribution front, quite a bit has changed when it comes to vaccine eligibility. As of March 30, only Wyoming has not yet announced when all adult residents will be eligible for the vaccine. Expanding Eligibility Some states have already opened up vaccine appointments to all adults, including: But is this a wise decision? While Alaska, North Dakota, and West Virginia have been standouts for efficient distributionandhigh rates of full immunization since we started this tracker, the same is not true for the other states throwing open eligibility....

A third COVID-19 vaccine has entered the scene.Over the past week, Johnson & Johnson’s recently-authorized vaccine has made an impact on the total number of doses available to Americans—even if the rate of people actually getting vaccinated hasn’t changed much. The federal government delivered nearly 20 million vaccine doses to the states between last Monday and Monday, March 8—the largest week over week increase we’ve seen yet.While the Biden administration had already stated it would raise the number of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines shipping out to the states during the month of March,the 3....

While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has not yet started reporting vaccination data specifically for this age group, we can already tell it’s making a difference. The rate of first doses administered is starting to steady. This comes after several weeks of sharp decline. Prior to this new tier of eligibility, most people who wanted to get vaccinated had already received at least one dose. Accordingly, the country experienced—and is still experiencing—waning enthusiasm for COVID vaccinations among adults....

President Biden is adjusting expectations for the summer’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout. On May 4, Biden announced a new goal for the country: By July 4, 70% of U.S. adults will have at least one shot, and 160 million U.S. adults will be fully vaccinated. May 5: Where Do We Stand?56.7% of U.S. adults have at least one shot106 million U.S. adults are fully vaccinated (41.3%) May 5: Where Do We Stand?...

Key TakeawaysThe side effects of the updated COVID-19 vaccine are similar to the ones people experienced with previous versions, including sore arm, swelling or redness at the injection site, headache, chills, and possibly a fever.Not everyone who gets a COVID shot will have side effects. When they do happen, side effects of COVID-19 vaccines are usually mild and go away within a few days.Experts recommend physical activity, staying hydrated, and getting enough rest to cope with vaccine side effects....

Key TakeawaysSeveral clinical trials testing COVID-19 vaccines in kids are currently underway.Children as young as 12 are now eligible to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.Now that over half of the U.S. adult population has received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, the country is expanding its efforts to get kids vaccinated next.Currently, there are three COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the U.S., but clinical trials are still underway to determine if these vaccines are safe for younger age groups....

Key TakeawaysTwo new studies show that the Pfizer vaccine is highly effective at protecting against some key variants of concern.Experts remain hopeful that the mRNA vaccines will help slow the spread of viral variants around the world.Moderna announced results from a test for a booster shot, including one aimed at neutralizing the B.1.351 variant. Key Takeaways Two new studies show that the Pfizer vaccine is highly effective at protecting against some key variants of concern....

Key TakeawaysAll community health centers can now receive the COVID-19 vaccine from the federal government, which will help ensure equity in the vaccination program.Community health centers are federally qualified to provide primary healthcare services in underserved areas, such as rural and inner-city locations.Community health centers usually provide care on a sliding fee scale. Key Takeaways All community health centers can now receive the COVID-19 vaccine from the federal government, which will help ensure equity in the vaccination program....

Key TakeawaysThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will collaborate with 21 national pharmacy partners and independent pharmacy networks to increase access to the COVID-19 vaccines.Some of the participating pharmacies include Walgreens, CVS Pharmacy, Inc, Rite Aid Corp, and Costco Wholesale Corp.By offering COVID-19 vaccines at pharmacies, the federal government can leverage already established distribution networks for timely distribution of doses. Key Takeaways The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will collaborate with 21 national pharmacy partners and independent pharmacy networks to increase access to the COVID-19 vaccines....

Key Takeaways If vaccines had been rolled out at half the actual rate, an additional 121,000 Americans could have died and more than 450,000 more could have been hospitalized. “This isn’t just an abstract thing,”Eric Schneider, MD, MSc, an author of the study and senior vice president for policy and research at the Commonwealth Fund, tells Verywell. ”This is actually affecting the population. Here are the people whose lives were saved as a result of this intervention....