The Federal Emergency Management Agency is asking the Pentagon to help with President Joe Biden’s plan to expand COVID-19 vaccinations across the country over the next three months, several reports said Thursday.
The Department of Defense is analyzing it, CNN reported.
“The department is assessing the demand and what types of support it can provide. Given the significance of the demand, it will be reviewed urgently but carefully to determine what DOD assets can be safely made available to support the effort,” the carrier said. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.
“As secretary [of Defense Lloyd] Austin said DOD is committed to doing as much as possible to support the entire government’s effort against COVID-19, “he added.
While the statement did not provide the number of soldiers who could be involved, an unnamed official told Reuters that there could be thousands.
According to The Hill, possible solutions could include sending up to 10,000 active forces and national guards to mega-vaccination hubs.
Biden said Monday he had set a goal of vaccinating 1.5 million people a day in the coming weeks.
“It will be a logistical challenge that goes beyond anything we have ever tried in this country, but I think we can do that,” Biden said at a news conference.
But White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday the goal is aspirational, and COVID-19 White House adviser Andy Slavitt said the next day that “Monday” will pass until everyone who wants to a vaccine will be able to receive one, The Hill reported.
In remarks to CNN on Tuesday, Biden’s chief of staff, Ron Klain, mentioned a number of obstacles the administration faces in achieving its vaccination goals.
“It’s not just vaccines,” he told reporters. “In some states … the problem is the lack of people to fire. We are working to increase this capacity. In some states there are not enough places. We announced the creation of federal vaccination centers. So we need more vaccines, we have we need more vaccinations, we need more vaccination sites. We’re working on all three of these things. “
© 2021 Newsmax. All rights reserved.