A shortfall of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine is having a cascading effect for providers around Michigan. Many clinics are rescheduling their patients.
Health departments in Washtenaw and Wayne Counties did not receive the number of vaccines they expected this week and are postponing appointments as they await new doses. But those will come from Moderna, not Pfizer. That vaccine is handled differently, and county health officials say they were not set up to administer the incoming shots, leading to delays. Governor Gretchen Whitmer says the Trump administration has not been transparent about availability.
“We find out that there was never any vaccines held back. They flat out were being dishonest with us,” said Whitmer.
A spokesperson with Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services says the state received more than 258-thousand doses of vaccine from the federal government this week. That’s about 60-percent less than what was requested by local vaccine providers.