West Virginia Becomes an Unlikely U.S. Vaccination Star

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As the U.S. races to vaccinate the population against Covid-19 and get the country back to some semblance of normalcy, West Virginia has executed its inoculation campaign better than most richer and healthier states.

It’s a surprising twist for a remote corner of the nation that regularly ranks at or near the bottom of lists measuring public health. Now, with the arrival of Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine, West Virginia is continuing to innovate.

The J&J vaccine is easy to transport because it doesn’t require freezing. It also obviates the need to track people to ensure they return to same location for a second dose. So health officials in West Virginia are taking it on the road to reach homeless and homebound people and others who might otherwise balk at even a single dose.