Residents Can Send In Questions For White House Vaccination Team

Ellicott City MD

19 February, 2021

3:20 PM

Description

HOWARD COUNTY, MD —Residents are encouraged to submit questions to Howard County Executive Calvin Ball's office that will be presented to White House officials during a March 4 phone call regarding the COVID-19 vaccine. Ball recently participated in a National Association of Counties phone call with three White House officials: Intergovernmental Affairs Senior Advisor Luke McGowan, COVID-19 Intergovernmental Affairs Director Eduardo Cisneros and White House Vaccine Coordinator Dr. Bechara Choucair. They discussed vaccine supply and equitable distribution. "The quick and effective distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine requires all levels of government be in constant communication and work collaboratively," Ball said in a statement. "We're encouraged by the active role this administration is taking in communicating more directly with local governments and ensuring we have the resources to equitably get shots in arms. We've already seen progress with earlier notification of how many doses we will receive each week, and we'll continue to push for additional doses for our community." Officials noted the challenges with the weather this week during the phone call, but affirmed their commitment to increasing supply of vaccine doses and personal protective equipment. White House officials also described their roll-out of FEMA mass vaccination sites as well as using community health centers across the nation along with FEMA staff, trained vaccinators and members of the U.S. military to assist communities and states with vaccination efforts. "Counties across America continue to fulfill a vital role in mitigating and ending COVID-19, vaccinating residents, reviving our economies and serving our most vulnerable residents," NACo Executive Director Matthew Chase said in a news release. "A strong federal-state-local partnership is necessary to overcome the challenges we face." Thursday's phone call also touched upon the American Rescue Plan, the Biden administration's COVID-19 relief package. Ball intends to participate in these calls bi-weekly and will direct residents' questions to the White House Vaccination Team during the next call. Questions can be emailed to [email protected]. Put "Question for White House Vax Team" in the subject line of their emails.