Michigan and Alaska are among a growing number of states that have announced plans to expand access to coronavirus vaccines well ahead of President Joe Biden’s deadline to provide vaccines to all US adults by May 1.
On Tuesday, Alaska became the first state to announce that anyone over the age of 16 in the state is now eligible to receive the vaccine.
“We want our economy to work again. We want our society to work again,” Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy said on Tuesday. “We want to leave this virus behind – as far as possible, as quickly as possible.”
So far, Alaska has fully vaccinated 16 percent of its population, which is the highest rate in the country, The New York Times reported.
During his announcement on Tuesday, Dunleavy encouraged all “Alaskans who are thinking of” getting the vaccine to do so, adding that the state’s launch “gives us the ability now in Alaska to outperform other states,” Times reported.
On Friday, Michigan joined the state announcing that all residents aged 16 and over will be eligible to receive the vaccine by April 5.
Individuals between the ages of 16 and 49 with certain medical conditions or disabilities will be eligible from March 22. Then, on March 24, a mass vaccination site will open at Detroit’s Ford Field to administer 6,000 additional doses a day for two months, the Associated Press Report.
“The safe COVID-19 vaccine is the most effective way to protect you, your family and others from the virus,” said Governor Gretchen Whitmer in a statement. “This will help the country to go back to normal and help the economy.”
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Along with Michigan and Alaska, Utah Governor Spencer Cox said on Wednesday that the state would allow anyone 18 and older to receive the vaccine from April 1.
Ten days later, the state will officially suspend the mask’s mandate and expects to have 1.5 million doses of the vaccine administered by then.
In addition, authorities in Minnesota and Florida have suggested that adults in those states may receive the vaccine sometime in April, although they have not yet devised a specific plan for this, Forbes reported.
Each state’s ads come as Biden pledged, on Thursday, to open access to the vaccine to all US adults by May 1.
In his first public speech since his inauguration 50 days ago, Biden said he had ordered states, tribes and territories to make all adults eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine by that time. He added that his hope is to bring the nation closer to “normal” by the fourth of July.
“We are going to go from the millions of shots per day I promised in December, before taking office, to beat our current rate of 2 million shots per day, surpassing the rest of the world,” said Biden on March 11. .
“I need you to get vaccinated when it’s your turn,” he added, “and when you can find an opportunity, help your family, friends and neighbors get vaccinated too.”
So far, 19 percent of the United States’ population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, while 10 percent have been fully vaccinated. According to data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the country administered 98 million doses of the vaccine.
Newsweek he contacted the governors of Michigan and Alaska, as well as the White House for further comment, but received no response in time for publication.