Washington, DC: Congressman Tom Suozzi (D-Long Island, Queens) called on the Biden Administration and the U.S. State Department to assist the Indian Government in its COVID-19 vaccine distribution efforts.
“Thank you for your leadership and for the Administration’s work to restore America’s place in the global community. In the spirit of that effort, I urge the federal government to assist the Indian government in its COVID-19 vaccine distribution effort as soon as it has the capacity to do so,” wrote Suozzi.
Suozzi continued, “In recent weeks, India has become a global epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. This week was one of the deadliest of the pandemic in India, which recorded 4,205 deaths on Wednesday, carrying the total number of confirmed deaths due to COVID-19 to more than 250,000. India’s healthcare system is under tremendous pressure and doctors and patients alike are in urgent need of assistance.”
Suozzi welcomes the Biden Administration and State Department’s continued efforts to provide relief to India –including the delivery of over $100 million worth of medical supplies and raw materials required to manufacture vaccines – but believes the U.S. must continue to assist India as they struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, the U.S. is the world leader in vaccine distribution efforts and production.
Less than 10% of the Indian population has received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. With the on-going COVID crisis in India, the country reported 4,205 COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday. Suozzi, like the Biden Administration and leading health scientists, believes increasing the vaccination rate worldwide is the best tool to combat the on-going global pandemic.
