Storm Stymies Vaccinations in 10 States More Than a Week Later

(Bloomberg) -- More than a week after winter weather upended America’s vaccination push, about 1 in 5 states are still trying to regain momentum in the Covid-19 vaccination push.

In 10 states, the seven-day average of new doses is lower than it was two weeks earlier, according to the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker. Among the worst, Indiana was off 43% and Mississippi was set back 42%. Arkansas and Texas were down 41% each.

The slump is unlikely to last, especially because data compiled by Bloomberg show the U.S. will have enough shots to fully vaccinate 130 million Americans by the end of March. While there have also been distribution-related hurdles, limited supply has been the ultimate impediment to a faster rollout.

Still, the delay stings at a time when authorities are racing to head off the circulation of faster-spreading Covid-19 variants.

The U.S. posted 71,177 new cases on Tuesday, bringing the seven-day average up slightly to 72,238, the second such increase in as many days, according to Johns Hopkins University data. But the numbers are down about 74% from their January peak, and authorities hope to get sufficient shots in arms before the trend meaningfully changes.

The U.S. has reported almost 503,000 Covid-19 deaths cumulatively, but the pace of the fatalities is expected to drop quickly in the next four weeks.

The Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker shows 13.4% of Americans have already had at least one dose. Some seven-day averages were affected by the addition of federal entities such as the Bureau of Prisons and Indian Health Service to state tallies from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to Covid Tracking Project data:

• New York has the most people currently hospitalized with Covid-19 per capita.
• The seven-day average in new cases fell in 42 states and the nation’s capital. Among the states that saw an increase, the worst were Washington (+43%), New Hampshire (+18%) and Rhode Island (+17%).

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