CDC Looks to Help Primary Care Deliver COVID Vaccines

The White House and CDC are looking to help states better incorporate primary care into their COVID-19 vaccination strategy. They have launched a three-pronged effort that includes:

• providing states with accessible lists of enrolled medical offices that are eligible to administer the vaccine, prioritized by social vulnerability data
• working with states to enroll more primary care clinicians to administer the vaccine
• providing technical assistance to jurisdictions to support distribution and enrollment activities

The federal government does not plan to make any direct allocations of vaccine to primary care, apart from the existing health center program. The administration’s plan comes at a time when many primary care practices are asking to play a more active role in COVID-19 vaccination efforts but lack supply and local/state coordination. The latest Larry A. Green Center/PCC survey of primary care clinicians shows that more practices are now administering COVID-19 vaccines but still not a majority.