Frustration is building, as people can't get COVID vaccines and cases surge

"The amount of confusion surrounding availability of the new vaccine has been maddening," said Lazniarz, who lost his best friend to COVID a year and a half ago.

He's far from the only one who is upset. Doctors and pharmacists report they are being inundated with questions about the uncertainty surrounding the long-available vaccines this fall.

Fueling that is the recent announcement from the Department of Health and Human Services, led by the vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr., that adults under 65 will have to consult with a healthcare professional or, in some states, attest that they have an underlying medical condition before they can get the updated version of the COVID vaccination this fall.

Parents this year are also required to talk to a healthcare professional before their children can be vaccinated.

Kennedy previously said the guidance would “keep vaccines available to people who want them, especially the vulnerable,” while demanding additional research. But the additional hurdles are such that some healthier, younger people are wondering whether they should just say they have an underlying medical condition, even if they don't, to get the vaccine.

As of Thursday afternoon, neither Walgreens nor CVS were allowing adults in California under age 65 to book COVID-19 vaccine appointments unless they attested to having an underlying medical condition — such as asthma, diabetes or high blood pressure. CVS said those people could contact their healthcare provider for next steps.

The role of pharmacists — and whether they're considered "healthcare professionals" who can authorize administration of the vaccine — also remains murky.

Amid this new federal regulatory landscape, there are 11 states in which residents, depending on their age, can only get a COVID-19 vaccine at a CVS pharmacy if they get a prescription for it: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, New Mexico, New York, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia, as well as the District of Columbia.

Colorado, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania took steps this week so that people wouldn't have to get prescriptions to get their COVID-19 vaccine at a pharmacy.

The confusion has spread nationwide. One doctor in Oregon, hoping to get her COVID vaccination Thursday ahead of a trip, said on social media that her CVS pharmacist told her that she was being denied the vaccine, per regulations.

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a doctor himself, said Thursday he's heard from a physician friend that pharmacists are requiring a prescription — even for seniors age 65 and over — to get a COVID-19 vaccine, "creating a huge headache." And he spoke of a stage 4 lung cancer patient from Georgia who has been unable to quickly get a COVID-19 vaccine.

"I would say, effectively, we're denying people vaccines," Cassidy told Kennedy during a Senate hearing.

"Well, you're wrong," Kennedy replied.

Kennedy has said he wants more studies on the COVID-19 shots, which he has long claimed are harmful — even deadly.

The actions taken at the federal level have effectively resulted in "a slowdown of access" to the COVID vaccine, said Richard Dang, a pharmacist and associate professor at USC.

Dang said decisions regarding this fall's COVID-19 vaccines by the FDA and the CDC — both of which fall under the HHS umbrella — should have been made months ago.

Not only has the FDA acted to "approve" the COVID-19 vaccine just for select groups, but the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices hasn't met to issue its recommendations, something many healthcare providers typically wait to review before administering vaccines. The committee — now filled with members handpicked by Kennedy — is scheduled to meet in a few weeks.

"That, frankly, is too late in the season. These decisions should have been made months ago, and HHS seems to be delaying that to as late as possible," Dang said.

Both-siders take note: elections really do have consequences. For fuck's sake start taking this shit seriously. Write to the White House, the CDC, and your congressional reps. Even Nazi Germany was susceptible to public pressure when it came to killing the disabled.

I wonder how many of these older people voted for Trump?