However, despite reports of technology hiccups, changes in allocated supply and other logistical hurdles, some states have stood out as clear leaders in effective Covid-19 vaccination efforts.
More than 31 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine have been distributed to states and other jurisdictions in the United States, but only 12.2 million – 39% – have actually been administered, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control. USA and Prevention.
However, nine states managed to administer more than half of the doses they received: North Dakota, West Virginia, South Dakota, Connecticut, Texas, Louisiana, Kentucky, Colorado and Montana, as well as Washington, DC.
North Dakota and West Virginia lead the country, having administered more than 65% of the doses distributed.
In comparison, Alabama and Georgia administered only 23% of their doses and five other states administered 30% or less.
When it comes to effective vaccination with Covid-19, “there is no magic solution,” Claire Hannan, executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers, told CNN.
In states that are moving faster, strategic planning and communication, reliance on strong local partnerships, and states that take responsibility for the process have played a role.
In South Dakota, talks on vaccine planning began as early as August and continued daily, Daniel Bucheli, director of communications for the state’s health department, told CNN.
“Preparation, not panic, has been the key,” he said. “There is daily communication, with the opportunity for partners to share feedback on what is working and what is not. Open lines of communication are in progress.”
Efforts to build a unified system also began over the summer in Colorado, bringing hospital systems, emergency management, technology leaders and more together for a “statewide approach,” said Scott Bookman, Covid- 19 to the state health department, CNN.
According to Bookman, all vaccine suppliers in the state must administer the doses they received within 72 hours. If they do not, the state will intervene and move the unused doses to another location.
“You will hear 72 hours in Colorado all the time,” he said. “We moved the vaccine from one place to another. And now we are at a point where providers understand our expectations and how we take them seriously. ”
Setting expectations in advance and often among everyone involved was key, he said.
“We made this a top priority. We set expectations that we will succeed, that we will save lives and return Colorado to normalcy.”
In Colorado, almost all long-term care facilities – including nursing homes and assisted living – have opted for a federal program in partnership with CVS and Walgreens to administer vaccine doses to the high-priority group.
But across the country, the federal program had mixed feedback, with some directors of nursing homes and other health care providers blaming the lack of logistics and bureaucracy for slow implementation.
Although Bookman says the program has not progressed as quickly as expected or expected at long-term care facilities in Colorado, Walgreens and CVS have been great partners and the state has stepped in where needed to provide additional support staff and technology support.
Meanwhile, West Virginia has taken full responsibility for administering the vaccine. Hannan, of the Association of Immunization Managers, credits part of West Virginia’s success to the decision not to participate in the federal long-term care facility program.
“The biggest thing we did was to move away from the standardized (federal) program,” West Virginia Governor Jim Justice told CNN.
More than 40% of pharmacies in West Virginia are not affiliated with a chain, and the state wanted to prioritize existing relationships, the governor said at a news conference on Dec. 16.
“Instead, we partnered with all pharmacies in West Virginia. We think that, from a state perspective, we would be limiting our ability to quickly distribute and administer the vaccine to the population in need if we had opted for the federal program ”. he said.
Acting independently, West Virginia began vaccinating at long-term care facilities about a week before other states began.
The state also broke with federal guidelines on priority groups to receive the vaccine first, emphasizing speed over details.
“There is a real sleeping giant that is a problem, and that is just one thing: we, like other states, are going to take an unbelievable inventory because everyone is trying to come up with a program on how to administer vaccines,” Justice told CNN.
On Tuesday, federal leaders asked states to transfer people aged 65 and over and those with high-risk health to the forefront. West Virginia, however, had already announced a program to vaccinate older residents – Operation SOW: Save Our Wisdom – about a week earlier.
Notably, many of the states that manage their vaccine distributions most efficiently are among the most rural states in the country.
Few health systems responsible for larger sections of the population can play a role in success, say some.
Hannan notes that in North Dakota, the state works closely with suppliers to distribute the supply and redistribute, if necessary. The same is true in South Dakota, where some major health systems cover a large part of the population.
“They have strong relationships with suppliers that cannot be replicated in larger states,” she said.
In anticipation of the emergency use authorization for the Covid-19 vaccine, Monument Health in South Dakota began building databases of individuals in its care who would be eligible to receive the vaccine and contact them proactively, Dr. Shankar Kurra, vice president for medical affairs, told CNN.
As one of the three largest health care providers in the state, Monument Health covers almost half of the state’s population and its spreadsheets and reach reflect this.
“There are several reasons for the success,” said Kurra. “The health department and how they communicated when the vaccine will be available, three health systems in the state make it that much easier logistically, and the third factor is critical: even with just three systems, we decided to make it a mission to administer doses within one week from the date we receive them. “
CNN’s Nadia Kounang contributed to this report.