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President Joe Biden’s coronavirus response team is preparing to send vaccines directly to retail pharmacies for the first time as soon as early February, a move that would create new access points for Americans to get immunized against COVID-19. The exact timing is still uncertain and highly dependent on the nation’s overall vaccine supply. But two sources familiar with the matter told McClatchy that the president’s new task force is pushing ahead with the plan, eager to expand vaccination availability to more people in more places as the virus continues to spread and new variants emerge.

“This is an integral part of the National Vaccination strategy that the president released a couple of weeks ago and we are working as quickly as we can, and as the supply allows, to execute on it,” one White House official said on condition of anonymity.

U.S. seniors citizens and other high risk groups are on a wild goose chase to secure a Covid-19 vaccine. The distribution process has been confusing in many states and often starts with false hope that leads to a dead end. Many have been unable to register for an appointment or have had their confirmed appointments postponed due to shortages. As a professor of management who has studied complex supply chains over the past 30 years, it’s clear to me that several aspects of what makes private systems run efficiently are applicable to vaccine distribution. They are crucial to solving this public health crisis, including clear lines of communication, coordination, and a collaborative environment. 

A year into the coronavirus pandemic, Americans are painfully aware that overcoming the scourge is a marathon, not a sprint. Enter Dave McGillivray, who knows a thing or two about endurance events — and logistics. The race director of the Boston Marathon, which is on hold until fall, has been tapped by the state of Massachusetts to run mass vaccination operations at Gillette Stadium and Fenway Park. Idled at his day job by the pandemic, he’s part of an emerging group of event organizers and other unconventional logistics experts who are using their skills to help the nation vaccinate as many people against COVID-19 as possible.

Of the many things that COVID-19 has made abundantly clear to us, surely one of them is a newfound realization that public health has become increasingly complex. Understanding the challenges to public health — that is, the task of guarding the well-being of the US population — is essential now more than ever. As an engineer, design futurist, and graduate program director, I have seen how COVID-19 has transformed how public health preparedness is viewed and understood. Some say the pandemic has delivered an urgency for a reimagining of public health.

Bill Renda expected to spend this time of year traveling and visiting family, were it not for the pandemic. Instead, the retired orthopedic surgeon from Louisville, Ky., and his wife, Sally, spent much of January in a cold parking lot, directing drivers to a place for observation by medical staff after receiving doses of Covid-19 vaccine. Dr. and Mrs. Renda, a docent at the city zoo, signed up with more than 4,000 others to staff Broadbent Arena, which normally hosts the Kentucky State Fair. This month, the arena was converted into a drive-through site with the capacity to administer 1,600 shots a day. Joining the Rendas are local librarians, parks department workers, students from the local nursing and pharmacy schools and others volunteering 40 hours in exchange for getting vaccinated.