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Wisconsin Says It's Getting Shorted On COVID-19 Vaccine

Scott Olson/Getty Images
A nurse shows a container of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine after it was used to vaccinate the first five staff members at Roseland Community Hospital on December 17, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois.

Add Wisconsin to the list of states told by the federal government that it will be receiving less COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech than initially expected.

Gov. Tony Evers said on Friday that the state was told on Thursday it will be receiving 35,100 doses of the vaccine, less than expected after 49,725 arrived this week. The Department of Health Services did not respond to messages about how much vaccine was expected.

Several states say they have been told toexpect far fewer dosesof the Pfizer vaccine in its second week of distribution, prompting worries about potential delays in shots for health care workers and long-term care residents.

READ: Pfizer Says Millions Of Vaccine Doses Are Ready, But States Say Shipments Were Cut

“This is unacceptable," Evers said in a statement. “Wisconsin citizens deserve the vaccine the federal government promised. Our healthcare workers and long-term care residents need this vaccine that is ready and available. We call on the federal government to send us more vaccine without delay.”

Senior Trump administration officials on Thursday downplayed the risk of delays, citing a confusion over semantics, while Pfizer said its production levels have not changed.

Evers also called on the federal government to provide clarity about how much vaccine the state will get.

As of Friday, Wisconsin had nearly 452,000 positive cases and 4,315 deaths.

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