In 1947 there was a small pox epidemic in NYC and 5 million New Yorkers got vaccinated in two weeks. The COVID-19 vaccines have been available for almost two months and, so far, less than 200,000 New Yorkers have gotten the shot.
How did we go from being able to vaccinate nearly the entire city's population in less than a month seventy-four years ago to a tiny fraction of that today in almost two months?
The answer is, quite simply, outsourcing.
Back in 1947, the vaccines were distributed at clinics set up by the Department of Health. New Yorkers went to one in their neighborhood, got the shot, and life went on. It was centralized and efficient -- and fast. But today it's been outsourced to hospitals and medical centers -- i.e. private profit-seekers -- and so it's become a giant strategic and inefficient mess.
It's really quite tragic -- and yet another example of how the so-called "free market" has failed the public.
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