US pharmacies begin vaccination on February 11 1:12
(CNN) -
The Biden administration announced Friday that it will deploy approximately 1,000 troops to the United States to help with coronavirus vaccination.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved a request from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to push vaccination with the support of active duty U.S. soldiers, the senior adviser on active duty said Friday. the covid-19 of the White House, Andy Slavitt.
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The plans call for 1,110 service members to train into five teams to travel to five FEMA Covid-19 vaccination sites, according to the Pentagon.
CNN reported earlier Friday that orders are expected to call for soldiers to be ready for deployment in 96 hours, according to two defense officials.
Slavitt confirmed Friday that part of the group will begin arriving in California within the next 10 days to begin operations in the area around February 15.
"And additional vaccination missions will follow soon," he announced.
He promoted the "crucial role" of the military at vaccination sites.
As he said, "they will ensure that every American who wants a vaccine gets it."
Slavitt said the Pentagon will provide more details during a briefing on Friday.
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This effort responds to a request from FEMA to the Pentagon for military assistance in the supply of vaccines to meet President Joe Biden's goal of increasing the number of Americans receiving the injections during his first 100 days in office.
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The National Guard already supports vaccination
As of Friday morning, about 35.2 million doses of vaccines had been administered in the United States.
About 6.9 million people had received their second dose, according to data reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Department of Defense and FEMA have been discussing sending up to 10,000 soldiers.
Each team will have personnel who can administer vaccines and support soldiers.
The goal is for the armed forces to eventually administer about 450,000 vaccinations a day.
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How?
Now the US Northern Command in Colorado Springs is expected to determine exactly which soldiers will go.
They could include active duty and National Guard personnel.
There is already a separate National Guard deployment across the country.
"There are more than 20,000 deployed National Guardsmen supporting (vaccination against) COVID, including at more than 216 vaccination sites in 36 states and territories," said Max Rose, Senior Advisor on COVID-19 to the Secretary of Defense. .
The Pentagon has also kept hundreds of its staff on alert so they are ready to deploy to help overwhelmed health centers and hospitals across the country.
Armed ForcesVaccine against coronavirus