Some states say Pfizer vaccine allotments cut for next week

O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Several states including Idaho say they have been told to expect far fewer doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in its second week of distribution.

Idaho, with many other states, has received word that our allotment of the Pfizer vaccine for next week has been reduced from 17,550 to 9,750 doses. We don’t know why it was reduced. But our focus doesn’t change – healthcare workers will continue to receive the vaccine.

— DHW (@IDHW) December 17, 2020

That's leading to worries about potential delays in shots for health care workers and long-term care residents.

But senior Trump administration officials on Thursday downplayed the risk of delays.

Two officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity are citing a confusion over semantics.

Pfizer said its production levels have not changed.

The first U.S. doses of the vaccine were administered Monday. Already this week, hundreds of thousands of people, mostly health care workers, have been vaccinated.

The pace is expected to increase next week, assuming Moderna gets federal authorization for its vaccine.