RI’s vaccine rollout receiving criticism as NYT ranks state last in country
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) – Rhode Island’s vaccine distribution plan is receiving harsh criticism from state leaders following a ranking by the New York Times that has the Ocean State last in the country for vaccine rollouts.
The NYT report, using data from the CDC, ranked states based on both the percentage of residents who have received a first dose, and the percentage of vaccine doses administered so far.
On Monday, Lieutenant Governor Dan McKee released a statement criticizing the Raimondo administration’s handling of the vaccine rollout. Mckee, the incoming governor, said he plans to speak with Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont this week to discuss what worked for his state.
“Like most Rhode Islanders, I am not satisfied with the current administration’s progress on vaccine distribution, especially as we see our neighbors in Connecticut ranked among the top in the nation,” McKee said.
Other state leaders agree, like Rhode Island General Treasurer Seth Magaziner. While he said he doesn’t lay the blame on anyone, he’d like to see the state make the vaccination system easier.
“As treasurer, I know that the best thing that we can do for Rhode Island’s economy and for our state finances is to get vaccines administered to as many people as possible as efficiently as possible,” Magaziner said Tuesday in an interview with ABC6. “Despite the heroic efforts of our healthcare workers, the vaccine rollout statewide has not been as good as it should be.”
Magaziner said he’d like to see the state take the same approach with vaccine registration as it did with testing appointments – using one portal.
He also said it would be beneficial for the state to have more state-administered vaccination sites.
“People are used to the testing system. It’s easy, you go to one statewide portal and you can choose from multiple different sites where you’re gonna get an appointment. That’s the direction I’d like to see us move in Rhode Island so that it’s less confusing for people and easier to navigate.
“For many Rhode Islanders, now that we’ve reached the phase where large portions of the population are eligible, the process has been too confusing to register, too opaque, so that’s why we want to change direction to have a system that’s easier for people to navigate.”
The Rhode Island Department of Health has defended its rollout plan, citing hospitalization data that has decreased since the first shots were administered.
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A statement from Governor Gina Raimondo’s office Tuesday echoed that: “The day the first Rhode Islander got their COVID-19 vaccine, we had 504 hospitalizations. Today we have 181, a 64% decrease. Now, our focus is on ramping up our capacity, beginning with the opening of two state-run mass vaccination sites this Thursday,” spokesperson Audrey Lucas wrote.
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