22M COVID-19 vaccines set to ship next week, White House says

WASHINGTON — More than 22 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines will be distributed in the next week, a record in the U.S. fight to contain the coronavirus.

The White House announced that states will receive more than 16 million doses of the three approved coronavirus vaccines, slightly higher than last week. The balance will go to federally administered programs, including mass vaccination sites, retail pharmacies and community health centers.

White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients informed governors on a Tuesday call of their allotments. Most of this week’s doses will be from Moderna and Pfizer, but some supply of Johnson & Johnson is beginning to ship.

The supply is set to accelerate even further next week when the federal government expects J&J to begin shipping 4-to-6 million doses per week.

The increase supply comes as more states are lifting eligibility criteria for the vaccines ahead of President Joe Biden’s mandate that all adults be eligible for vaccination by May 1.