[Farm93]

Good point,Tim. My guess is that minorities are higher in the pyramid for vaccinations because of their higher degree of comorbidities due to lack of good medical care, basic poverty, crowded living conditions, etc. GR, your disdain for these arguments is baffling.

In medicine and science sometimes the results show that race is a factor.  IIWII.

This would be like finding a cure for sickle cell and not prioritizing those in the African American community.   Or failing to promote the availability of that new sickle cell cure at HCBUs or black churches.

However, it is true that using race for any program can quickly go into very dangerous territory and could lead to even greater skepticism in the very communities prioritized for the first batches. 

Ultimately I am confident the federal government will announce a plan that prioritizes vulnerable African-American and Hispanic groups without specifically targeting them.  I have more confidence in a potential POTUS46 doing it well, but could imagine that 2nd term POTUS45 could get it done if he puts sensible Republican governors on the vaccine team (Hogan, DeWine, Baker, Sununu, etc.)

That group could declare that the vaccine should be prioritized for
#1) Military
#2) Health Care Workers
#3) Public Transportation workers and others deemed essential workers in 2020 in urban areas with a population density greater than X.

The population density metric would also quickly prioritize the working poor and the target minority groups without declaring that explicity.

By mid-2021 my guess is 100 million doses might just be sufficient to cover all of those willing to take the virus cleared only by an emergency use process since fewer Americans appear eager to be early in line for a vaccine with each POTUS45 rally.  After each rally there are more that don't no longer trust POTUS45 on COVID and others that believe him when he says COVID19 is nothing to fear.   So the more he talks the more likely a limited number of doses will be sufficient. 

GR - That's just the way it is.   I really wish POTUS45 was a credible agent on COVID messaging because projections indicate consistent messaging would have saved lives and consistent messaging could save thousands of lives going forward.  Sadly for all of us, since any of us could die from COVID in mere days, his inability to provide a consistent message or manage the complexities of COVID will mean thousands more will die before we find a new normal.  Any COVID topic for the USA is going to drift to POTUS45.  Should you not want to see POTUS45 and COVID together in a thread I would suggest avoid posting about COVID.

[Farm93]

Good point,Tim. My guess is that minorities are higher in the pyramid for vaccinations because of their higher degree of comorbidities due to lack of good medical care, basic poverty, crowded living conditions, etc. GR, your disdain for these arguments is baffling.

In medicine and science sometimes the results show that race is a factor.  IIWII.

This would be like finding a cure for sickle cell and not prioritizing those in the African American community.   Or failing to promote the availability of that new sickle cell cure at HCBUs or black churches.

However, it is true that using race for any program can quickly go into very dangerous territory and could lead to even greater skepticism in the very communities prioritized for the first batches. 

Ultimately I am confident the federal government will announce a plan that prioritizes vulnerable African-American and Hispanic groups without specifically targeting them.  I have more confidence in a potential POTUS46 doing it well, but could imagine that 2nd term POTUS45 could get it done if he puts sensible Republican governors on the vaccine team (Hogan, DeWine, Baker, Sununu, etc.)

That group could declare that the vaccine should be prioritized for
#1) Military
#2) Health Care Workers
#3) Public Transportation workers and others deemed essential workers in 2020 in urban areas with a population density greater than X.

The population density metric would also quickly prioritize the working poor and the target minority groups without declaring that explicity.

By mid-2021 my guess is 100 million doses might just be sufficient to cover all of those willing to take the virus cleared only by an emergency use process since fewer Americans appear eager to be early in line for a vaccine with each POTUS45 rally.  After each rally there are more that don't no longer trust POTUS45 on COVID and others that believe him when he says COVID19 is nothing to fear.   So the more he talks the more likely a limited number of doses will be sufficient. 

GR - That's just the way it is.   I really wish POTUS45 was a credible agent on COVID messaging because projections indicate consistent messaging would have saved lives and consistent messaging could save thousands of lives going forward.  Sadly for all of us, since any of us could die from COVID in mere days, his inability to provide a consistent message or manage the complexities of COVID will mean thousands more will die before we find a new normal.  Any COVID topic for the USA is going to drift to POTUS45.  Should you not want to see POTUS45 and COVID together in a thread I would suggest avoid posting about COVID.