Press Releases

Washington, DC—March 22, 2021….Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) sent a letter urging the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to bolster allocations of COVID-19 vaccination doses to Northwest Arkansas. The request follows recent data showing the need to enhance vaccination rates in the region. In addition to sending the letter, Womack today also had a meeting with Governor Asa Hutchinson, Dr. José R. Romero (Secretary of the Arkansas Department of Health), and Colonel (Ret.) Robert Ator (Program Manager for Arkansas Vaccine Distribution) to further discuss these concerns, vaccine tracking, and federal and state coordination efforts.

Congressman Womack said, “Arkansas has made vaccine distribution and coordination a priority. Our state and local leaders are using data to identify successes and gaps in current plans, and we want to maximize getting shots into arms. My goal is to ensure no part of the region falls extremely behind. I’ll continue working with all state and federal stakeholders to make sure the Natural State has the resources needed to defeat the coronavirus.”

While Arkansas has implemented a robust vaccination plan, recent data found that counties in the Third District had lower-than-desired inoculation rates, with no county reaching over 20% of its population being partially vaccinated. The statistics indicate an important need to increase vaccination rates across Northwest Arkansas. Womack is working in coordination with Governor Hutchinson, the Arkansas Department of Health, and Arkansas’s Community Health Centers to enhance vaccination rates and further protect the public health and safety of residents.

Womack supports robust vaccine distribution to establish herd immunity, which will enable Arkansas and the nation to reopen our country quickly and safely. 

The full text of the letter can be read below:

Dear Acting Administrator Espinosa,

It has come to my attention that a number of counties in my district, which encompass Northwest Arkansas, have fallen woefully behind the rest of the state in vaccination rates. While Arkansas has a robust vaccination plan, it has become clear that the northwestern part of the state is rapidly falling behind. I fully understand that the bulk of responsibility in implementing a vaccination program falls to the state; however, the Biden Administration has taken significant steps to directly send doses to pharmacies and Community Health Centers.

I have attached a document highlighting the counties in my district and their vaccination totals and rates. As you can see from the attached document, not a single one of my counties, which are highlighted, is at or above the average partially vaccinated rate of 23% for the state, and, for that matter, not a single one of my counties has over 20% of its population partially vaccinated. This document clearly shows that more must be done to increase vaccination rates across Northwest Arkansas.

With this in mind, I strongly encourage the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to increase its shipment of doses to those communities in Northwest Arkansas that are in need of additional vaccines, and to coordinate with providers like Community Health Centers to ensure these doses are reaching the populations they serve. I recently spoke with Arkansas’s Community Health Centers, and they are ready to receive more doses, and, more importantly, they already have the critical infrastructure in place to run efficient and effective programs. For decades, providers like Community Health Centers have built relationships rooted in trust within the communities they serve which can only benefit our nation’s vaccination efforts.

As the federal government continues to distribute doses of the vaccine, it is vital that we critically examine the data illustrating the needs across the country and distribute vaccines accordingly. Further, we should target communities that stand ready with plans to quickly vaccinate their populations, as is the case in Northwest Arkansas. Doing so will be a crucial step in developing the herd immunity that will enable us to reopen our country as quickly and as safely as practical. 

Sincerely,

Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) has represented Arkansas’s Third Congressional District since 2011. He is a member of the House Appropriations Committee.

womack.house.gov

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