SCRANTON, Pa. — Gov. Tom Wolf was back in Scranton for the first time in over a year, speaking to officials and patients during a tour of the clinics at Scranton Primary Health Care Center. He praised center staff for staying open throughout the pandemic, working on the front lines, and distributing vaccines across Lackawanna County.
Mayor Paige Cognetti is encouraged by the county's progress.
"We're starting to see that tipping point, getting over that point where we are starting to really get a lot of shots in arms across Lackawanna County," said the mayor.
The governor says it's a similar story across the commonwealth, presenting new data he says shows progress.
"As of today, we are 15th in the nation in terms of getting shots into arms, first doses," Gov. Wolf said
But the rollout has faced obstacles. Data released by the CDC earlier this week ranked Pennsylvania 49th out of 50 states in elderly vaccinations. The governor responded to the criticism he received.
"If I'm one of those seniors that hasn't been vaccinated, it's absolutely fair. The question is, given the constraints that we operate under, the supply that's not up to demand, the fact that we have logistical challenges, the fact that we have to find good places like this to make sure that we're getting shots into arms all across the state, could we have done a better job? I don't think so."
Gov. Wolf doubled down on his promise that every Pennsylvanian in phase 1A will have a vaccine appointment scheduled by the end of the month.
"If it's an appointment, it's not one that's a few months out. It has to be within a reasonable period of time, a couple of weeks, and I think we're going to meet that," Wolf said.
Scranton Primary Health Care center is still administering vaccines, giving some eligible patients a shot even if they're visiting for another reason.
Mayor Cognetti says Lackawanna County has submitted its application for a mass vaccination site to speed up the process.
"I asked the governor this morning to see if we would be able to expedite that mass vaccine site," the mayor said. "I'm hoping that once we have those doses here in Pennsylvania, that those doses will get up here, and we will be able to get shots in arms very quickly."
The governor was joined by Rep. Marty Flynn and COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force member Rep. Bridget Kosierowski.