Hinson Joins Iowa House Members to Push Biden Administration to Employ New COVID-19 Vaccine for Rural Areas

Press Release

Today, Rep. Ashley Hinson (IA-01) joined Reps. Cindy Axne, Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-02), and Randy Feenstra (IA-04) to urge the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to utilize the newly approved COVID-19 vaccine to ramp up vaccination efforts in Iowa's rural areas.

The new COVID-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, which only requires one dose and can be stored using regular refrigeration, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last Saturday.

"As Members of Congress representing a state with many rural residents, we understand the specific challenges our rural communities face in looking to vaccinate residents efficiently and equitably," the members wrote. "Prioritizing distribution of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to rural areas would: reduce the burden on rural health care providers and county health officials; simplify the distribution and administration process; and, ensure equitable vaccine access for rural Americans."

The members highlight that over 1.1 million Iowans live in rural areas, over a third of Iowa's population, and that a recent study showed that one in four Americans in rural areas reported having trouble accessing health care.

"We recognize the logistical difficulties in ensuring safe vaccine distribution in rural areas -- like increased transportation needs, lack of cold storage, and limited health professionals," the members wrote. "That is why we urge you to prioritize distributing the single-shot, refrigerator-stable COVID-19 vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson"

The members also specified that they are recommending this new vaccination option should be leveraged in addition to allocations of vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech.

"Critically, we urge you to ensure the Johnson & Johnson vaccine supplements distribution to states instead of supplanting doses of the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines currently being distributed," the members wrote.

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