By GRANT SCHULTE-Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Nebraska should see at least 43 retail pharmacies participating in a new federal program to help provide coronavirus vaccinations, although state officials don't have a good way to communicate with all of them to avoid mistakes, Gov. Pete Ricketts said Wednesday.
Ricketts said he's grateful for the additional 5,700 doses Nebraska will get through the federal program, but voiced concerns about how all the different businesses will coordinate with the state's efforts. He said the federal program didn't include a clear way for states and retailers to ensure they're on the same page.
"This is an area we do have concerns about," Ricketts, a Republican, said at a news conference to discuss the state's pandemic response. The coordination is critical to ensure "good information is going back and forth between those pharmacies and the state so that we can keep track of who's been vaccinated."
An email request for comment from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wasn't immediately returned.
Nebraska retailers participating in the program include Walmart and independent pharmacies throughout the state. Walmart announced Tuesday that it will start vaccinations Friday at more than a dozen of its Nebraska stores, all in smaller cities outside of Omaha, Lincoln and Grand Island.
Ricketts' comments followed a phone conference Tuesday between U.S. governors and federal officials about new efforts to distribute vaccine doses. Ricketts said he didn't have any concerns about a similar program that will send additional vaccine doses directly to community health centers, because Nebraska doesn't have that many and Ricketts said state officials should be able to work with them without any issues.
State officials also reported progress Wednesday on their efforts to deliver second doses to people who still need one to become fully immune to the virus. State officials reported last week that roughly 6,000 residents hadn't received their second injection within the recommended time window. On Wednesday, Nebraska Chief Medical Officer Gary Anthone said the number had been reduced to about 4,300.
Meanwhile, Omaha officials on Tuesday extended a citywide mask mandate for another three months to help limit the spread of the coronavirus. The City Council voted unanimously to extend the requirement through May 25.
The council also rejected a proposed change to the rule that would have exempted children aged 5 to 12. Currently, the mandate generally requires everyone 5 and older to wear masks any time they can't stay six feet apart from others indoors.
Council members Aimee Melton and Brinker Harding said they proposed the amendment to offer more flexibility to parents and schools to make judgment calls on whether to exempt young children from wearing masks.
Councilman Ben Gray said he opposed the change because infectious disease experts recommended maintaining the city's mask mandate.
The state said 5% of Nebraska's population has now received both required doses of a coronavirus vaccine and 246,623 doses have been administered.
Nebraska reported 462 new virus cases and eight deaths Wednesday for a total of 194,632 cases and 1,986 deaths in the state. The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Nebraska decreased over the past two weeks, going from 767.86 new cases per day on Jan. 26 to 390.43 new cases per day on Tuesday.