With COVID 19, it is A Tale of Two Arizonas

President Biden and Vice President Harris had a virtual tour of the vaccination site at State Farm Stadium in Glendale Arizona on February 8, 2021.

Advertisement

During the event which included Arizona Health Department Head Dr. Cara Crist, everyone sang each other’s praises, thanking each other for their hard work and efforts since the beginning of the Biden/Harris Administration.

Everyone discussed the steps that were being taken to produce, distribute, and administer the vaccines.

President Biden stressed the importance of unity and how the Coronavirus is not a Red State or Blue State issue. He emphasized that the power of united American resilence is essential in combatting the pandemic.

Both the Vice President and President signaled out the efforts of Dr. Crist and Governor Ducey with Ms. Harris calling Arizona “a model” for the nation and Mr. Biden saluting Mr. Ducey’s “cooperation.”

This event, designed to show a united front against COVID 19 that was progressing, was truly uplifting.

Another Arizona.

While what is being accomplished at State Farm Stadium, Phoenix Municipal Stadium, and other sites across the Grand Canyon State is truly inspiring and everyone working every day to treat and vaccinate all of Arizona’s residents should be saluted, there is still much to do to ensure everyone in all of Arizona gets equitable and prompt Coronavirus medical treatment.

Recent reporting by AZ Central’s Stephanie Innes and Alison Steinbach has shown there are still five major areas Arizona local health authorities need to improve upon. These are:

  • Publicly releasing vaccination data including demographic information.
  • Creating greater opportunities for receiving vaccinations outside Maricopa County.
  • Greater outreach to senior citizens who are in the 1a and 1b vaccination groups. This includes better reaching out to those who are computer illiterate, expanding phone line access for them to call in and make vaccination appointments, and arrange free transportation to and from vaccination sites.
  • Improving website and phone registration access. Registering on the web to get a vaccine is like signing up to go to Comicon. You have to click and click and click in the hopes you can sign in.
  • Improving the vaccine supply to meet the demand. While the new Administration has taken steps to improve the vaccine amount, there is still some catching up, thanks to the negligence of the previous Administration, that needs to be completed.

Commenting on what is happening outside of State Farm Stadium and other major Grand Canyon State vaccination sites, Arizona Democratic Party Chair Raquel Teran wrote:

“Despite Trump and Ducey’s failures, President Biden is delivering for the American people and continues to ramp up vaccine production and distribution. Instead of leading Arizona through a crisis, Governor Ducey chose to appease Trump while thousands of Arizonans died. He botched COVID-19 management and he dropped the ball on the vaccination rollout.”

On Biden and Harris calling Arizona a model and praising Crist and Ducey, another source in the Arizona Democratic Party, speaking on background, expressed:

“The President and Vice President are clearly determined to unify the country and solve the challenges we face. Getting State Farm Stadium on board with vaccine distribution is a step in the right direction for our state and it’s good that Ducey is cooperating with the administration in that regard. From that standpoint, we’re a model. But there is so much more Ducey can do, and because he isn’t it falls to the federal government to pick up his slack.”

Elvia Diaz of AZ Central was a little less charitable tweeting:

Please click here to read Ms. Diaz’s column on the Biden/Harris virtual tour.

A Tale of Two Arizona’s. 

COVID 19 has revealed two Arizona’s.

There is the one where people who know how to use a computer, are relatively able, can drive, and have a good support system with family and friends that can schedule an appointment to get a vaccine.

Then there is another Arizona where people who do not have a computer or access to the Internet, are infirmed, have no reliable transportation, and are virtually alone that need help to schedule a vaccination appointment. Many of these poor people are not getting the vital assistance they need to get a vaccination yet.

COVID 19 has amplified all the socio-economic divisions in Arizona and across the country.

This division has now manifested itself in vaccination delivery.

While the efforts at the vaccination distribution center at State Farm Stadium and other sites should be commended, there is a growing division of have and have not vaccine recipients.

The state’s leaders need to do a better job in bridging this gap and restoring health and hope to those people who feel no one cares about them.

The Biden/Harris Administration needs to ensure that no one is left behind if the State’s Leaders prove incapable of the total task.

 

 

Advertisement

Discover more from Blog for Arizona

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

4 thoughts on “With COVID 19, it is A Tale of Two Arizonas”

  1. I am computer able, physically able, have a phone, and a car and I can’t get an appointment! Every time I call or go on line, they are all full and as you say, I click and click and click only then to be told, none are available and no further information given. If I wait and get a person on the phone, I get the same. It’s a complete pile of steaming excrement. I about fell out of my chair when Biden praised Az.

  2. “Computer illiterate?” Come on that’s not respectful. Not ocmputefr sdavvy would have been approrpriate.

  3. And I’ll give you three guesses on where the recently added Safeway and Fry’s vaccination sites in Phoenix and Tucson are located. Let’s just say, they can hardly be found in areas with under-served populations.

Comments are closed.