Hawaii Gov. David Ige said he is demanding more COVID-19 vaccinations from the federal government and is unlikely to support further efforts of loosening Oahu's tiered reopening system.
In a Hawaii News Now report, Ige said that there are only 50 locations administration the COVID-19 vaccine throughout the Hawaiian Islands as of the moment. These 50 locations are administering approximately 40,000 doses per week, but the governor said he would like to see that number increase.
“We are definitely prepared to deliver more than twice what we are getting right now,” Ige said, as reported by the Hawaii News Now. “Even at that, it would take us to the end of summer to deliver two doses to a million people.”
Despite Honolulu's Mayor Rick Blagiardi's (I-Honolulu) efforts and attempts to push Ige into loosening restrictions for restaurants and school sports, Ige said he is going to keep with the current restrictions as they stand.
Ige did, however, disagree with unions that have criticized Hawaii for not having an actual vaccination plan. Ige said that those who are in "high-contact jobs or cannot telework get first dibs because of the shortage" of vaccinations, as reported by Hawaii News Now.