I don't like resharing breathless calls for action but I opened the docket and it does include
Matters To Be Considered: The agenda
will include discussion of COVID–19
vaccines. Recommendation votes for
COVID–19 vaccines are scheduled.
Given that, submitting a comment supporting continued COVID-19 vaccine availability seems highly reasonable.
EDIT (0700 UTC 8 September 2023): @cgranade commented:
Erin Kissane has provided some important context on where the 75+ stuff is coming from, it might be helpful in writing comments.
An additional issue is that if the recommendations are this limited, fewer vaccines will be available, as recommendations like these help pharmacies, clinics, and physicans' offices calculate inventory.
With that said, and for what it's worth, here's the comment I made, as I know sometimes it's difficult to figure out what to say. Don't copy mine word for word, as I suspect that would be grounds to dismiss the both of us as "bots" or something, but still.
For a moment, let me set aside the obvious unethical nature of restricting access to vaccines and comment simply on how foolish it is to restrict them in the ways that have been suggested:
First, vaccines only work if the maximum number of people possible have them. That's part of the point. They aren't designed to simply protect those who receive them; they are designed to protect everyone, even those who cannot receive them.
Second, there is no clear medical or scientific reason to limit the vaccine's availability: no significant side effects that only affect healthy immune systems and those under the age of 75, for example.
Third, we are in the midst of a pandemic so badly managed that the WHO has declared it endemic, meaning it is now as endemic as influenza, and, by comparison, no one would limit the annual flu vaccine to such a small range of citizens.
Now, returning to the ethics of the question, it is at best foolish and at worst malevolent to limit access to the covid vaccines, because that limits the number of people who can actually participate in society as a whole, including things like local economies, local government, and other important facets of our life together as a country, state, or city. Citizens deserve protection from natural disasters. Restricting availability of the covid vaccine would be as unethical as restricting access to FEMA funds or housing to those suffering from tornado, hurricane, or wildfire events.
