The Missing Link

The Missing Link

It was by all accounts a remarkable feat -- safe, effective vaccines against COVID-19 had been created in less than a year.

But that American triumph has been hamstrung by confusion, frustrating waits (I can attest to that), and reports of vaccine vials gathering dust while tens of thousands of people continue to die. 

Even people leading the effort are at a loss to explain how and why things took such a bad turn so fast. 

"I would love to understand it," Moncef Slaoui, head of vaccine development under the Trump administration and now an advisor to the Biden administration told USA Today.

Executives from major U.S. corporations are saying they can help. Big retailers, working more closely with local governments, could be a missing link in the distribution effort’s 10,000-piece puzzle.

 “Their core businesses are already geared around serving millions of customers day in and day out. They have locations right across the country and...national distribution and logistics networks,” Neil Saunders, managing director of Global Data Retail, told the Washington Post.

Among the hand-raisers:

  •  Walmart said it can dole out 10 million to 13 million doses a month.
  •  In Washington state, Starbucks, Microsoft, and Costco have all been tapped to help distribute vaccines.
  •  Amazon has implored the Biden administration to call upon its expertise for something a little more pressing than delivering a Ninja food processor in less than 12 hours.

This is the lead story to BBA Economic Digest, published Jan. 24, 2021, a weekly online publication for economic developers and business people. Six more stories follow that can be accessed by paid subscribers. If you would like to subscribe, click here.

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