Gianforte Says More Vaccines Needed In State Of Montana

During a press conference last week, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte noted that he has received approval to redirect 19,500 unused COVID vaccine doses to Montana residents.

“Every dose Montana receives is critical, which is why I promised you in my first week in office that we wouldn’t let vaccines sit on shelves. Today, we’re following through on that promise,” Gianforte said. “By working together, we can protect more Montanans and save more lives.”

The 19,500 doses identified by the state were originally provided to CVS and Walgreens under contract by the federal government to vaccinate residents and staff in long-term care facilities and assisted living facilities.

With the redirection of the unused doses, nearly 10,000 more Montanans in Phase 1B will be fully vaccinated.

In Phase 1B, Montanans 70 years of age and older, 16 years of age and older with a high-risk underlying medical condition, and Native Americans and other persons of color who may be at elevated risk for COVID-19 complications are eligible to receive the vaccine. The governor noted that on one day in mid-November that Montana had 1,600 new cases. Last week, there were 317 listed as new cases for one day.

“Even though we aren’t out of the woods yet, our trend lines prove promising,” Gianforte said.

He noted that Montana continues to receive one of the lowest allotments in the nation. He urged President Biden to increase the amount of doses sent. Gianforte said numbers are slowly increasing.

“Montana has proven its effectiveness in putting shots into arms,” Gianforte said.