(Newser)
– The Pentagon will send troops to help vaccinate Americans against COVID-19, the White House said on Friday. Senior Coronavirus consultant Andy Slavitt announced that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved a request for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to the AP. This means that about 1,000 active duty soldiers will be sent to help state vaccination centers. President Biden called for the creation of 100 mass vaccination centers across the country within a month. Two are opening in California, and Slavitt said military personnel will arrive in these centers in just over a week.
Slavitt said support from the military will play a critical role in supporting vaccination sites, helping to administer thousands of vaccines a day. Currently, about 6.9 million Americans have received the full two-dose regimen needed to obtain maximum protection from the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. This translates to about 2% of the US population. To achieve widespread or “herd” immunity, about 70% to 85% of Americans must be vaccinated. The United States is in a race with the virus, which is also generating mutations that may be resistant to vaccines.
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