Still, getting those vaccines into arms has gotten off to a slower start than federal officials had hoped. Michael Pratt, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, defended the pace of the vaccine rollout. He said in a statement that it was “a testament to the success of Operation Warp Speed” that 20 million doses had already been made available to states and other jurisdictions. So far, vaccines have been given primarily to health care workers at hospitals and to residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. He expressed hope that Mr. Trump, who has resisted wearing a mask and mocked Mr. Biden during the campaign for wearing one, could still influence the public in a positive way.

Source: New York Times December 30, 2020 00:39 UTC