© 2024 KALW 91.7 FM Bay Area
KALW Public Media / 91.7 FM Bay Area
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Vaccine Rollout’s Next Challenge: Deciding Who Gets Their Shot Next

Courtesy of Daniel Nam
Dr. Daniel Nam, DDS of Sutter Hospital and JustHealth510 gets vaccinated in Oakland.

The arrival of vaccines at the end of 2020 brought hope that there would be a light at the end of this long COVID-19 tunnel. Still, this week, cases around the country and the state continue to surge, and the vaccine rollout has been much slower than expected. Nationally, the United States was supposed to have vaccinated 20 million people by now. But instead, only 5 or so million have gotten their shots. California isn’t doing much better than the rest of the country. The state has only used about a quarter or so of what's available.

In this interview, we hear from Dr. Bob Wachter, the Chair of the UCSF Department of Medicine, about issues surrounding the rollout and what lies ahead.

Click the play button above to listen to the interview.

Watch the latest California Department of Public Health Community Vaccine Advistory Committee meeting and learn more about the state's rollout plan, here.

Angela Johnston is the Senior Producer of Uncuffed and an editor in the KALW newsroom. She holds a Master’s degree in journalism and graduated from KALW’s Audio Academy program. She’s worked for KALW in numerous roles - from the deputy news director, to the health and environment reporter, and she's covered everything from lead poisoning to climate change. Her work has aired on KALW, KQED, Reveal, and The Pulse. She also freelances as a producer and editor for Cosmic Standard and AFAR Media. Outside of work, she loves to swim in the bay, surf small waves on her longboard, read, backpack, cook, and garden.
Hana Baba is host of Crosscurrents, KALW's weeknight newsmagazine that broadcasts on KALW Public Radio in the San Francisco Bay Area.