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April 10, 2021

The Talbot Spy

The nonprofit e-newspaper for the Talbot County Community

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Maryland Faces ‘Extreme’ Threat of Gerrymandering, New Report Says

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Maryland is under “extreme” risk for gerrymandering when lawmakers draw up new election districts, according to a new report from an anti-corruption watchdog group.

The Gerrymandering Threat Index from the nonprofit group RepresentUs lists Maryland, alongside 26 other states, in the highest risk category for gerrymandering. States are listed under the group’s “extreme” risk category for giving “politicians complete control over an often-secretive, poorly-protected redistricting process.”

RepresentUs considered five questions when determining a state’s threat level for gerrymandering:

  • Can politicians control how election maps are drawn?
  • Can election maps be drawn in secret?
  • Can election maps be rigged for partisan gain?
  • Are the legal standards weak?
  • And, are rigged election maps hard to challenge in court?

The report cites Maryland’s Democratic supermajority as a flag for potential gerrymandering, since the state relies on the legislature to approve maps. Maryland’s governor initially crafts congressional and legislative maps that are presented to the General Assembly. Lawmakers can pass a resolution (not subject to veto) changing the legislative districts. The Maryland Constitution sets some requirements for legislative districts, including that they must be compact and give “due regard” to jurisdictional boundaries.

Congressional district maps aren’t subject to the same restrictions under the Maryland Constitution. The governor can veto the legislature’s proposed congressional district map —but lawmakers could override a veto from Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R), as they’ve done on several key pieces of legislation during the 2021 session and throughout his tenure.

Hogan has repeatedly attempted to create a bipartisan redistricting process since he took office, but his efforts have failed to pass the General Assembly. In January, he signed an executive order creating a bipartisan commission to make recommendations for the congressional and legislative maps that he will submit to the legislature ahead of the 2022 election.

Attempts to challenge the state’s congressional districts in court have also failed, with the U.S. Supreme Court declaring in 2019 that federal judges shouldn’t be the ones to settle disputes on gerrymandering.

That high court ruling came after a panel of federal judges ordered the state’s 6th Congressional District redrawn, arguing that the district had been unconstitutionally drawn to benefit Democrats.

Rep. John P. Sarbanes’ (D-Md.) omnibus election reform proposal, the For the People Act, would include a congressional redistricting overhaul and ban partisan gerrymandering. The sweeping reforms would also require states to use bipartisan, independent commissions to draw district lines.

The RepresentUs report lists the For the People Act as a “remarkable opportunity” to end federal gerrymandering.

“Ultimately, a system-wide crisis calls for a system-wide solution,” the report reads.

In all, the Gerrymandering Threat Index lists 35 states as having a high or extreme risk for partisan gerrymandering in the next round of redistricting. Two of Maryland’s neighboring states, Delaware and West Virginia, are also listed as having an “extreme” risk for gerrymandering. Pennsylvania is given a “moderate” rating, and Virginia a “low” rating.

Virginia voters last November approved a nonpartisan redistricting process.

By Bennett Leckrone

Hogan Moves to Open the Vaccine ‘Floodgates,’ Expands Access to Everyone 16 and Older

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Amid a stubborn rise in COVID-19 infections, the Hogan administration moved on Monday to expand vaccine eligibility at the state’s mass vaccination sites.

The decision means that all Marylanders age 16 and over will be eligible to sign-up for a shot at the state’s mass-vaccination sites effective on Tuesday.

People age 16 and older will be eligible to schedule appointments through all providers starting on April 12.

The actions, announced by Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) at a State House news conference, advance the registration process by two weeks.

“We are literally in a race between the vaccines and these new highly transmissible variants that are driving an increase in new infections and hospitalizations, particularly among younger people in the state across the country,” Hogan said. “Getting more people vaccinated as quickly as we possibly can is our absolute best defense against these variants, and it’s the best way to win this long war against this deadly virus.”

The decision to move the registration timeline forward reflects the significant increase in supply that the state expects to receive — and it underscores what officials said is an urgent need to address a rise in infections that is being driven by people under 40.

Michael Powell, a legislative analyst who tracks the pandemic, told the state Senate’s Vaccine Work Group on Monday that the rise in new cases is centered in Baltimore County, Baltimore City and Harford County.

“The data tells us that we’ve got to get young people vaccinated faster, so that we can break the back of this pandemic,” Health Secretary Dennis R. Schrader told the panel.

He said older adults “understand their risks and they’re being more careful,” while younger adults “feel like they’re indestructible often-times.”

“It’s clear that younger people are more mobile,” Schrader added. “They’re out and about.”

The newly confirmed health secretary said his agency is working with Maryland universities to get students vaccinated before they return home to their families at semester’s end.

Hogan also announced an expansion of the state’s no-appointment option.

Maryland’s first walk-up line opened Friday at the high-volume site located at the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center in Salisbury. Approximately 500 people got a shot on the first day, officials said.

On Tuesday, a line at the Hagerstown Premium Outlets site will open for people who lack an appointment. The state expects to add others throughout the month.

Hogan said the state’s first experiment with the walk-up lines in Salisbury went smoothly.

“We’re expecting the same thing to happen in Hagerstown and all our other sites moving forward,” he said. “It’s still best if you register: they have all your information, you know there’s a vaccine for you, it’s very smooth.”

Those walking up to a site risk being turned away if vaccine supplies run out, Hogan said. Asked if he was worried about a crush of vaccine-seekers at the walk-up sites, Hogan said: “We’re hoping for that, actually.”

He said an initial surge in vaccine interest is expected to level off as more people are vaccinated and the state will adjust after “this opening up of the floodgates.”

This week the state expects to receive 372,000 doses from the federal government. That number does not include the approximately 100,000 additional doses that go directly to private pharmacies.

The supply is expected to increase to 457,000 doses next week — and by the beginning of May, the state is projected to receive 535,000 or more doses per week through the remainder of the summer.

The state is adding seven additional mass vaccination sites this month. Three open this week at the Greenbelt Metro Station, Montgomery College in Germantown, and the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. Two sites are scheduled to open the week of April 12 at Frederick Community College and the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis. The Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen is expected to open a vaccination clinic a week later, and the state is working to open The Mall in Columbia site the same week as well.

Schrader told lawmakers that plans are being formulated for a potential need to administer booster shots as protection from the virus begins to “decay” over time.

Hogan responds to critical audit

Asked about an audit released Friday critical of the Hogan administration’s purchase of 500,000 test kits from a South Korean firm at a cost of $11.9 million, the governor dismissed the report.

Hogan called the audit “complete nonsense” and said the purchase of the kits “was probably one of the biggest accomplishments throughout this pandemic.”

The test kits, which were purchased as an emergency procurement without a formal contract, required complete replacement after a first batch failed to meet FDA requirements. Auditors were unable to conclude who within government was ultimately responsible for making the purchase.

Hogan said Monday that all of the purchased test kits were used and the Board of Public Works ultimately approved the purchase after the fact.

“The report was partisan nonsense,” Hogan said. “…I wouldn’t change a single thing. I don’t really care what those legislators have to say.”

By Bruce DePuyt and Danielle E. Gaines

Commentary: Slicing and Dicing the Democratic Vote for Governor by Josh Kurtz

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The goal in any election is to get 50% of the vote plus one — or, in a multi-candidate field, to get one more vote than everybody else.

So as we contemplate the 2022 Democratic primary for governor, where will the vote come from and how much does a candidate need to become the nominee?

The answer to the second question obviously depends on the size of field. Right now, it remains a lopsided two-person race between Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot, with his 15 years in statewide office and 35 years as an elected official, against Ashwani Jain, a former Obama administration official who hasn’t even been on earth as long as Franchot has been in public office.

But the field of course is going to grow — and probably soon. So let’s talk about the candidates, official and potential, and see where their vote might come from.

It’s always nice to have a political base in a statewide contest. That’s an advantage for Baltimore County Executive John A. Olszewski Jr., who is contemplating a run for governor.

In fact, of all the potential Democratic candidates, assuming as we do that Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks isn’t planning to run, Olszewski may be the only candidate with a real geographic base. Add to that the fact that he is the only potential Democratic candidate for governor on Baltimore TV regularly, and Johnny O’s geographic base looks even more formidable.

But how secure is that base, really? Olszewski got just a third of the vote in the 2018 Democratic primary for county executive, and while he would probably be a lock if he ran for re-election next year, there are certainly some Democratic voters at home who would oppose him in a gubernatorial primary — either because he raised taxes or for other policies they don’t like, or because some might just prefer another candidate.

Remember, in the 2018 Democratic primary for governor, then-Prince George’s County executive Rushern L. Baker III took just 49.9% of the vote in his home county in a race with nine candidates on the ballot. That’s a cautionary tale for Johnny O.

And let’s not forget about the appeal in Baltimore of Wes Moore, the author and anti-poverty activist, if he runs for governor, which is looking increasingly likely.

Moving to the other population center of the state, a lot of Democrats look at the field of announced and potential Democratic candidates for governor and see an awful lot of people from Montgomery County. True enough.

But while Franchot lays his head on a pillow in Montgomery County every night and represented the county’s most liberal legislative district for 20 years in the House of Delegates, he may not enjoy any kind of home field advantage. Until recently, Franchot as comptroller has marked out territory as a moderate with statewide appeal, geared to the swing voters of Dundalk and Cambridge who love Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) more than the wild-eyed lefties of Takoma Park and Silver Spring.

Similarly, former state attorney general Douglas F. Gansler, who seems compelled to run for governor a second time, is a Montgomery County guy. But Montgomery County is an increasingly diverse place, and Gansler seems to fit in only a part of it. Yes, Gansler has eight years of statewide connections, from his time as AG and his frequent appearances on the state’s Democratic rubber chicken circuit. But where is his base?

And what if U.S. Rep. David J. Trone runs for governor? He’s also a white guy from Montgomery County, though in an economic and social stratosphere all his own. If he ran, he wouldn’t rely on a geographic base so much as his ability to self-fund — which becomes a significant factor in and of itself.

Jon Baron, the former Clinton administration official and policy analyst who is exploring a run for governor, also comes from Montgomery County.

And there are two other potential candidates from Montgomery County. But beyond geography they seem to have several similarities that could cancel each other out.

Former Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez and former U.S. Education secretary John B. King Jr. are both progressive former Obama cabinet secretaries of color who live a couple of miles from each other — ironically, in Franchot’s old legislative district. Both travel in the same political circles and have many of the same national contacts. Do they have to come to some kind of agreement or risk canceling each other out in a Democratic primary?

On top of that, Jain is a former Obama administration official of color who lives in Montgomery County — albeit one who held a much lower profile position than Perez or King.

It is inconceivable that there won’t be a strong Black candidate in the race.

If Moore is the only significant candidate of color, he should get a substantial amount of the minority vote in the primary and would give Olszewski a run for his money in Baltimore, and could have broad statewide appeal — even though there are always risks with a novice candidate. But with King and Perez taking a look at the race, along with U.S. Rep. Anthony G. Brown, there could be no shortage of candidates of color for voters to choose from.

Here’s another potentially important segment of the Democratic electorate: organized labor. If Perez, a former U.S. and Maryland Labor secretary, is able to line up a significant portion of union support in the primary, that’s significant.

But Johnny O is a former teacher, and is personally close to the president of the Maryland State Education Association, Cheryl Bost, who is a teacher in Baltimore County. Does that give him an advantage in lining up the teachers’ endorsement? Franchot has already won the endorsement of the Laborers International Union of North America, a construction trades union that is eager to see if the comptroller votes for the interstate widening proposals that will come before the Board of Public Works soon.

We’ve had three competitive Democratic primaries for governor in the past 28 years. In 2018, Benjamin T. Jealous won the nine-candidate race with 40% of the vote. In 2014, Brown won 51% in a three-way race. And in 1994, Parris N. Glendening won 54% of the vote in what was essentially a four-way race (Glendening, the Prince George’s County executive at the time, won about 70% of the primary vote on his home turf).

It’s way too early to know for sure who will be at the starting gate when the filing deadline for governor finally rolls around in February 2022. But it’s not too early to start thinking about how the numbers add up. They’ll have to add up for somebody — the question is how, and for whom?

And once again, we look at this field and wonder: How is it possible that a woman of substance and character isn’t gearing up to seek the Democratic nomination for governor?

By Josh Kurtz

All Marylanders 16+ May Pre-register for COVID-19 Vaccine; Most Vulnerable Still Have Priority

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All Marylanders age 16 and up are now eligible to pre-register with the state for a COVID-19 vaccine, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced on Thursday. But he cautioned that the Department of Health will continue to prioritize older adults and those with health conditions when scheduling appointments.

The expansion of the state’s pre-registration system comes as the number of vaccination options continues to grow.

For the first time, eligible Maryland residents who lack an appointment will be able to get a vaccine beginning on Friday, when the existing mass-vaccination site in Salisbury adds a “walk-up” line.

The state’s Eastern Shore mass-vax site is located at the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center.

“This is Easter weekend. It’s a big weekend for Ocean City,” Hogan said at a news conference. “If you haven’t gotten a vaccine and you want one, I would say get in your car [on Friday], drive to the beach, stop in Salisbury, get everybody vaccinated and then go to Ocean City and get some Thrasher’s french fries, stay for the weekend and go to an Easter brunch on Sunday morning.”

While Hogan encouraged Marylanders to pre-register, “our plan is to continue to add additional no-appointment lines at other mass-vaccination sites as well.”

The week of April 12, mass vaccination sites will open at Frederick Community College and at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.

The following week, a high-volume site will open at Ripken Stadium in Harford County; the week of April 26, a mass-vax location will open at the Mall in Columbia, in Howard County.

Hogan said the state is moving to vaccinate people as quickly as possible in part because of the rapid spread of COVID-19 variants.

He said 86% of the state’s 677 cases of variant infection are the B.1.1.7 strain, also known as the U.K. variant. Six others have also been detected.

“We are quite literally in a race between these variants and the vaccines,” he said.

Public health officials have said the variants are one reason that infection, positivity and hospitalization rates are on the rise in spite of an increase in vaccinations.

Some public health experts and political leaders have also blamed an easing on business activity and social interactions, but Hogan rejected the suggestion that his March 12 order to relax restrictions was responsible for pushing Maryland’s numbers up.

“We don’t think it had anything to do with re-openings,” he said. Hogan noted that Maryland — unlike many states — has retained its mask mandate.

‘Critics owe Redfield an apology’

Hogan also offered a vigorous defense of Dr. Robert Redfield, the former head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and an unpaid adviser to the governor, from what he said were “disgusting” and politically based attacks.

Last week Redfield, who served as head of the CDC under President Trump, told CNN it was his opinion that COVID-19 “escaped” from a lab in Wuhan, China. His comments triggered angry reactions from Democrats, including several members of the General Assembly and Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot (D), a candidate for governor.

Hogan said it was “outrageous and disgusting” for critics to tie Redfield’s discussion of virus theory to attacks on people of Asian-American descent. “They should probably apologize to Dr. Redfield.”

“He said nothing whatsoever that was inflammatory,” the governor added. “He’s one of the most educated experts on virology in the world.”

Hogan said it was “political nonsense [to] attack him for giving his professional opinion, which I thought he did a very good job of explaining.”

Local leaders ‘need to keep up,’ Hogan says

The governor signaled that he is weary of criticism from local elected officials and health officers regarding the state’s vaccination program and its efforts to reach vulnerable residents.

He told reporters that that “many” jurisdictions have yet to comply with a February request from the state “to produce their own equity plans.”

As a result, the governor said, county health officers have been ordered to submit their plans by Monday.

According to the state Health Department, only 11 counties — Anne Arundel, Caroline, Carroll, Garrett, Howard, Kent, Prince George’s, Frederick, Somerset, St. Mary’s and Wicomico — complied with the original request.

“The state Health Department will also be providing each county with a targeted list of underserved ZIP codes and list of specific congregant facilities in their jurisdictions, which we need them to concentrate their efforts on,” the governor said.

In response to a question, Hogan brushed aside criticism that he drops major announcements on local officials without notice, necessitating a needless scramble.

“Our Health Department talks to their health officers nearly every single day,” the governor said. “We inform them just as decisions are made. … We’re trying to get them to keep up.”

In a statement provided to Maryland Matters, Ed Singer, Carroll County’s health officer and president of the Maryland Association of County Health Officers, pushed back on the idea that the state sought formal plans from the counties or set a deadline for the local health departments to respond.

“Local health departments have been working to ensure equitable distribution in our jurisdictions since we began vaccinating our citizens in late December,” he said. “We work closely with our jurisdictional governments and local community partners to identify means to reach underserved populations. While we have been planning to ensure equitable distribution, no formal request for a specific jurisdictional plan was ever made of the health officers.”

Scott: Don’t become a ‘meme’

Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott (D) on Thursday announced a new pre-registration portal for city residents seeking the COVID-19 vaccine — and he beseeched residents to exercise caution over Easter weekend.

The city’s infection and positivity rates are up significantly from four weeks ago, with 29 cases for every 100,000 residents, higher than the state and national averages, the city’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Letitia Dzirasa, told reporters.

In addition, hospital ICU and acute-care units are approaching 90% capacity.

She said “this new surge is different,” because people aged 20-29 and 40-49 are the most impacted.

“Gen Z, Millennials and Gen X are contributing most to the case counts here in the city,” Dzirasa said.

City residents aged 70 and over represent the lowest rate of new infections, which “indicates that vaccines work,” the health commissioner added.

Scott urged residents — young people in particular — to wear masks and limit social interactions over the holiday weekend.

“You are not invincible,” he said. “You can end up on a ventilator just like your grandmother or your grandfather.”

The city on Thursday launched a new Microsoft-based pre-registration portal — covax.baltimorecity.gov — that the duo said offered better functionality than the state’s PrepMod system.

All city residents are now eligible to pre-register and should do so, the mayor said. And he urged them to resist “COVID fatigue.”

“This is not over,” the mayor said. “Don’t become a meme of these folks who are out at these parties with no mask or having events and ending up on someone’s Instagram feed because you were irresponsible.”

The state’s pre-registration site is covidvax.maryland.gov. People who wish to pre-register by phone can call 855-634-6829.

By Bruce DePuyt

Md.’s Vaccine Network Able to Do 500,000+ Doses Per Week, Acting Health Secretary Says

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Maryland has the ability to administer more than half a million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine per week — and could get even more shots into arms when the state’s allotment increases sufficiently, the state’s acting heath secretary told legislators on Monday.

A vaccination program running at that clip would significantly alter the state’s efforts to protect residents from the virus, to the point where clinics would be actively searching for arms to put shots into.

“When those doses come, we’re ready to go,” Dennis R. Schrader told the state Senate’s Vaccine Work Group. “That’s why we’ve been building the infrastructure.”

The state expects to have access to 300,000 doses by the end of the month, with more coming in April.

Schrader said that if doses arrive in the numbers the state is expecting, hospitals will be able to administer 135,000 per week, local health departments will be able to do another 115,000, and mass-vaccination sites will be capable of doing more than 100,000.

Retail pharmacies could handle a minimum of 50,000 (and most likely “a lot more”), and primary-care physicians between 35,000 and 50,000, he added.

The secretary said having capacity at that level would not only be able to respond to the public’s demand for the vaccine, “we’re going to have to go in and pull people” from the community through various forms of outreach.

Maryland has four high-volume sites operating now and a fifth is scheduled to open in Hagerstown on Thursday. Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) is expected to approve a Montgomery County site — and perhaps others — this week.

“The announcements are close,” Schrader said.

It took the state 67 days to administer its first 1 million doses, but just 27 days to administer the second million, the health chief said. On Friday, the state hit a record — 57,550 shots.

Hogan announced last week that Maryland will quickly expand vaccine eligibility in the coming weeks, to the point where all residents are eligible by April 27.

Although older residents were prioritized in the early weeks of the distribution campaign, Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) said “it’s the final 30% of 70-year-olds and 80-year-olds that I’m worried about,” a reference to the seniors who have yet to get vaccinated.

Schrader said the state’s new engagement with primary-care physicians will be helpful in getting doses to other “hard-to-reach” populations that haven’t been vaccinated yet.

“I’m also concerned about the 30% that’s left in the 65-and-older population,” the secretary said. “The community doctors are the pathway to getting a lot of these folks vaccinated. They’re going to have head-of-the-line privileges” in the state’s new pre-registration system.

Despite high-profile efforts by Hogan and his team to boost the vaccination rate in Prince George’s County, it remains the lowest in the state. Approximately 16% of county residents have been fully vaccinated, roughly half the percentage in Talbot County, the state’s leader.

Schrader said there are “two or three things in the pipeline” to boost the numbers in Prince George’s, but he said they “are not cooked yet.”

On Monday the state Department of Health announced an increase in the number of doses going to local health departments. Local health officials have boasted for weeks of their ability to reach people of color, people with existing health conditions, workers who have frequent contact with the public and those who live in close proximity to others.

Under the new formula, Montgomery will receive 8,000 doses per week, Prince George’s 6,900 and Baltimore County 6,300.

By Bruce DePuyt

With Vaccine Supply Set to Soar, Hogan Announces Plan To Open Eligibility to All

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All Marylanders age 16 and up will become eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of April, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced on Thursday.

The move from the current eligibility phase — 1C — through Phase 2 to the final stage, Phase 3, will come in steps, Hogan said.

And he cautioned that being eligible for a shot is no guarantee that residents will be able to get one immediately, as demand continues to outpace supply.

“We can’t schedule appointments for vaccines that we don’t have or that don’t yet exist,” he told reporters at a State House news conference.

The governor also stressed that people in Phase 1 who have yet to be vaccinated will continue to be prioritized by the state’s pre-registration system.

Nonetheless, he said the move to open vaccinations to everyone over the next six weeks represented a major milestone in the massive campaign that began in late December.

“Nearly 90% of the state’s 7,929 COVID deaths have been Marylanders over the age of 60. By prioritizing this age group, we will take a huge leap forward in the effort to protect our most vulnerable citizens from this virus,” Hogan said.

Phase 2A, which includes residents 60 and over, will open on March 23.

Maryland’s move to universal eligibility will occur over the next few weeks:

  • Phase 2B, residents 16 and older with an underlying health condition, effective March 30.
  • Phase 2C, residents 55 and over, as well as “essential” personnel who work in restaurants and the food industry, utility and construction workers, along with transportation, financial services and IT employees, effective April 13.
  • Phase 3, all Marylanders 16 and over, effective April 27.

Residents 60 and older can pre-register effective immediately, at covidvax.maryland.gov or by calling 1-855-634-6829.

Earlier this month, President Biden urged states to open their vaccinations to all by May 1.

Maryland recently surpassed the 2-million dose mark. Nearly 1.3 million people have received at least one shot, and 740,887 had been fully vaccinated as of Thursday.

Hogan said White House officials recently warned states to expect only “incremental” increases in vaccine supply in the next couple weeks, with the expectation that “significant” increases will follow shortly thereafter.

“If they deliver on what they say they’re going to deliver, April is going to look a heck of a lot different than March.”

State to enlist family physicians and deploy mobile units

Hogan announced others steps the state is taking to diversify its population of vaccine-recipients:

  • An undisclosed number of mobile clinics will be launched through a partnership with the University of Maryland School of Nursing. The clinics, which will function on a walk-up and drive-up basis, will focus on “hard-to-reach” communities. Each one will have the ability to administer between 60 and 160 doses per day. Staffing will be provided by the Maryland National Guard.
  • Family doctors will soon get a role in providing vaccinations under a pilot program that seeks to leverage the rapport physicians have with their patients. Hogan said physicians “will be able to call their patients directly to schedule vaccine appointments, which will minimize technological and access barriers, and reach individuals where they are.” The pilot will begin with 37 practices that have largely Black and Hispanic patients, as well as though who don’t live close to other vaccination sites. The state’s doctors have been seeking a greater role in the vaccination program.
  • The Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission will provide $12 million for hospital-based vaccination initiatives. Participating hospitals will work with local health departments, non-profits, faith-based organizations, and others to increase vaccine access, particularly in underserved areas.

By Bruce DePuyt

New Vaccine Sign-up a ‘Start,’ But More Is Needed, Officials Say

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For weeks, state legislators and local leaders have pleaded with the Maryland Department of Health to institute a sign-up system for its COVID-19 vaccination program.

On Saturday, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced a partial, but significant step in that direction — the creation of a new pre-registration system for Maryland’s five mass-vaccination sites.

Marylanders in Phase 1 can pre-register at covidvax.maryland.gov or by calling the state’s COVID-19 vaccination support center, at 1-855-MD-GOVAX (1-855-634-6829).

State lawmakers and others said the move represented a good, but overdue, first step. Some suggested that local health departments should have been made a part of the new system.

According to news release circulated on Saturday, Marylanders who pre-register will be notified once an appointment is available. They will then be asked to verify their pre-registration status and reserve an appointment.

The state stressed that appointments will not be doled out on a first-come, first-serve basis. “To help ensure vaccine equity, appointments will be released based on eligibility and supply,” the unsigned news release stated.

People who pre-register with the state can (and probably should) put their names on other lists as well.

Local health officers, county leaders, state lawmakers, members of Congress and residents have pressed the Hogan administration for weeks to institute a statewide sign-up system.

They complained that the current system essentially forced vaccine-seekers to sign-up in multiple places — including pharmacy chains, supermarkets, their local health department and elsewhere — spending long hours on the computer in the process.

Many said the result was a “Hunger Games”-style competition that benefited those with computers, reliable internet service, flexible work schedules and technological savvy. The COVID pandemic has disproportionately impacted people of color, lower-income Marylanders and people with jobs that require contact with the public.

Saturday’s statement gave no explanation for the apparent about-face.

“We’ve all got a lot to gain by working together to improve the front-end process for people seeking a vaccination,” said Michael Sanderson, executive director of the Maryland Association of Counties.

He said that if local health departments are “able to piggyback on this state system” in the future, it “might simplify things for lots of Marylanders seeking shots.”

Harford County Executive Barry Glassman (R) offered a similar thought.

“It’s certainly a step forward and will hopefully help the state centralize all registrations on a consolidated site to relieve folks from having to surf several sites,” he said.

Acting Health Secretary Dennis R. Schrader briefs the state Senate’s Vaccine Work Group every week. Despite repeated calls for a more centralized sign-up process, Schrader has defended Maryland’s approach, saying that a statewide portal risked becoming “a single point of failure.”

Sen. Clarence K. Lam (D-Howard), a physician and a member of the panel, called the new system “a positive development” but he said it does not go far enough to simplify the process.

“After nearly two months since my colleagues and I in the Senate suggested a single registration site, this is a long overdue improvement,” he said.

“While this is a positive development, it is only limited to the handful of the state’s mass vaccination sites and unfortunately still leaves out the thousands of other vaccine providers in the state from a single sign-up process, which we continue to hear frustration from our constituents about on a daily basis.”

Residents who pre-register will be asked to provide demographic information, including gender, race and ethnicity. They will be asked to indicate a preferred location and whether they have special needs, such as language services, assistive technology or help with transportation.

The state currently has five mass-vaccination sites. They are located in Baltimore, Largo, Salisbury, Hagerstown and Waldorf.

Sen. Paul G. Pinsky (D-Prince George’s), the chairman of the Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee, said, “I welcome the centralized vaccination approach. My only question: why has it taken three months of chaos and a ‘go it alone approach’ to get to this point?”

By Bruce DePuyt

As ‘Big 8’ Leaders Debate Hogan’s Re-Opening Order, Top Expert Calls it ‘Premature’

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Local leaders representing nearly 80% of Maryland’s population held a conference call on Wednesday to discuss Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr.’s decision to lift most limits on commerce and social gatherings.

The Republican governor’s decision — announced Tuesday — came as a surprise to most, if not all, members of the so-called “Big 8,” a group that includes the leaders of the seven largest counties and Baltimore City.

Now they are trying to decide what their legal options are — and whether to heed Hogan’s call to shed the restrictions that were imposed over the last 12 months to contain the spread of COVID-19.

Two leaders announced after the meeting that they will follow the state’s lead, joining Harford County, which embraced the lifting of restrictions immediately. 

But a top public health expert called Hogan’s decision “premature.”

Joshua M. Sharfstein, vice dean for Public Health Practice and Community Engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said it would have been wiser to wait until the state’s vaccination program is further along and more is known about COVID-19 variants.

Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein

“There’s still a fair amount of virus in Maryland,” Sharfstein said in an interview. “That’s why some of the easing of restrictions before people are vaccinated seems premature.”

“We’re so close to getting a huge surge of vaccinations in this state and in this country,” he added. “I think it’s better to go step-by-step, rather than one gigantic leap.”

Hogan’s order lifts restrictions on dining, houses of worship, fitness centers, casinos and other venues, effective at 5 p.m. on Friday. Also Friday, the state will allow 50% capacity at larger venues like Camden Yards, conference centers, theaters, wedding halls, horse tracks, etc.

The state’s broad mask order and distancing requirements remain in effect.

The governor’s order also repeals the authority of local governments to impose stricter limits on commerce and social interaction by piggybacking on the state’s emergency powers — though they can potentially do so under their own authority.

The wording of that portion of the order confused local political leaders and the Maryland Association of Counties, and it sent county attorneys scrambling to determine what new framework might be needed.

On Tuesday, Hogan insisted that local subdivisions retained the right to keep tighter restrictions in place, but he urged them to “get in line” with the expanded freedoms.

The issue is moot in counties like Harford, where Executive Barry Glassman (R) announced immediately that he will open his economy to align with the governor’s orders on Friday.

But in the other Big 8 subdivisions, all run by Democrats, the rush to the law books has been a matter of urgency.

Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D) panned Hogan’s action. In an interview, he said opening restaurants around the state “will trigger another spike” in infections.

“It’s a serious mistake,” Elrich (D) said. “It’s flat-out not safe. It’s the one place where masks come off. Under no scenario are restaurants a good idea.”

Hogan’s order does not allow bar patrons to stand. And it requires that restaurant tables be socially distanced.

Those mandates will blunt the impact of the governor’s action, Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman (D) predicted.

“What really protects people is the distancing requirements,” he said. “It’s going to keep restaurants well below 100% capacity, because normally their tables are much closer together.”

Pittman called it unlikely that there will be a “big public health impact” from allowing more people to dine in restaurants. He also said the impact on revenues will also be muted.

“It’s sort of a nothing-burger,” he said.

Baltimore County Executive John A. Olszewski Jr. (D) told reporters on Wednesday that “leaders in local government neither had a seat at the table… nor any advance notice.”

He said his team is “actively exploring” the meaning of the state’s order, the county’s “legal options,” and the latest pandemic data to determine whether it’s time to reopen.

In lifting restrictions on Tuesday, Hogan pointed to the state’s improving health metrics, including its low positivity rate, along with the expansion in the vaccination program. The governor’s new health adviser, Robert Redfield, the former head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under President Trump, said he supported Hogan’s actions.

Sharfstein, the public health expert at Hopkins — and a former state Health secretary under Gov. Martin J. O’Malley (D) — said it was disappointing to read in the media that local leaders were “blindsided” by the governor’s decision.

“These decisions should be coordinated among different levels of government,” he said.

Aides to Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D) and Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott (D) said they were trying to determine what power they retain and what their legal options are. Frederick County Executive Jan M. Gardner (D) is expected to discuss Hogan’s order and its impact on the county at her weekly COVID-19 briefing Thursday.

Although some counties — including Montgomery — are virtually certain to seek to maintain at least some restrictions on commerce, Pittman announced late Wednesday that Anne Arundel “will align with new state policy.”

He will sign a new executive order retaining the current limits on social gathering, 10 persons indoors and 25 persons outdoors, by Friday, his office said. 

“I don’t have much appetite, this late in the battle, to fight this one,” he said.

Pittman will insist on limited gatherings because — without them — “a lot of people will think it’s time to have parties again.”

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball III (D) announced late Wednesday that his jurisdiction will also align with the state on reopenings, effective Friday at 5 p.m. 

In a news release, Ball said that the county’s coronavirus metrics have improved significantly from a post-holiday spike.

“We will continue watching our data very closely over the next two weeks, and if aligning with the Governor’s decision is detrimental to the health and welfare of our residents, we will not hesitate to reimpose restrictions,” he said.

By Bruce DePuyt

State Ramps Up Vaccine Equity Plan; Hogan and Scott Spar Over Doses, Funding

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After weeks of pressure to boost the distribution of COVID-19 vaccine into communities hit hardest by the virus, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) on Thursday announced new efforts to reach minority and low-income residents.

The campaign will give community organizations that want to host vaccination clinics the opportunity to apply for doses and support.

One such clinic, Hogan said, will open on March 16 at First Baptist Church of Glenarden, a site requested by Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D).

The site will be supported by the University of Maryland Capital Region Health. When fully operational, it will administer 900 doses a day, officials said.

Maryland National Guard Brigadier General Janeen Birckhead said other locations will be evaluated as their requests come in. The state, which will serve as a “clearinghouse,” will look at a range of statistics in the surrounding community — including vaccine disparities, household density, family incomes, vehicle access, and the percentage of seniors and single parents — in determining which applications to approve.

Birckhead leads the state’s Vaccine Equity Task Force, which Hogan formed in late January. She said the task force will assist local organizations in filling out their paperwork.

“It’s a top-down and a bottom-up approach,” Hogan told reporters at a State House news conference. “We’re trying to do everything we possibly can.”

Hogan said 60.4% of Maryland’s vaccines have gone to white residents; the state’s population is 58.5% white.

“We’re not where we need to be with the Black community or the Hispanic community,” he said. “We’re continuing to take every effort to ramp that up.”

Although the state’s three mass vaccination sites are located in majority-Black communities, residents of surrounding counties have swooped in to obtain the majority of the shots. A fourth high-volume site, in Waldorf, had a “soft launch” on Thursday, administering 500 vaccine doses. Charles County also has a majority-Black population.

In Prince George’s, only 10% of the first 32,000 doses administered at Six Flags America went to county residents. Alsobrooks, who has been reluctant to criticize the state, called that “unfair” and “outrageous.”

Like all states, Maryland has seen demand for the vaccine greatly outstrip supply.

But critics — including an array of Democratic local officials, state lawmakers, members of Congress and advocates for the disadvantaged — have accused the state of bungling its vaccine rollout.

They say the complicated system, with its layers of distribution points, favors people with flexible schedules, computer and internet access, and technological savvy.

The task force also announced Thursday that it is working to bring mobile vaccination clinics to Western Maryland and the Eastern Shore. State-owned vaccination trailers will make stops throughout the Eastern Shore.

Maryland will coordinate with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to utilize larger mobile clinics on the Eastern Shore and in Western Maryland.

“We have listened and we will assist,” Birckhead said. “We still have a way to go.”

Raskin, Trone seek mass-vaccination site in Montgomery

In a Wednesday letter to Hogan, the Montgomery County Council said the state’s distribution campaign has mirrored the epidemic itself, with people of color and low-wage residents being impacted disproportionately.

“Black residents are dying at higher rates and we’re not getting vaccinated,” said Montgomery County Council member Will Jawando (D) in a statement. “Our Latino population has also been disproportionately affected by this disease.”

“We need a statewide approach that factors in race and ethnicity. We want everyone to have access and it needs to be done in a targeted way,” he added.

Two-thirds of Montgomery’s doses have gone to white residents, who make up 43% of the population, lawmakers wrote. Black people represent 19% of the population but have received only 8% of the doses, while 9% of the county’s Latinx residents, who represent 20% of the population, have been vaccinated.

Reps. Jamie Raskin (D) and David J. Trone (D) on Thursday urged the governor to establish a mass-vaccination site in the county. In a letter, the lawmakers noted that Montgomery is the state’s largest county and has both a majority-minority population and “a significant health care workforce and a substantial elderly population over the age of 75.”

Raskin and Trone said that — although the mass-vax sites in Baltimore and Prince George’s counties are open to Montgomery County residents — “this offer seems like cold comfort when so many logistical hurdles face lower-income, working-class, immigrant, and senior residents in Montgomery who are unable to arrange transportation or get time off from work to travel to distant sites.”

Hogan, Scott spar over doses, funding

Hogan praised the Prince George’s County Health Department, which he said had improved its vaccination program following a slow start.

But he ratcheted-up a war of words with Baltimore officials.

Hogan told reporters that the city had declined to accept $8.8 million in federal funds to support its vaccination efforts, and that Baltimore had requested that doses in its control be transferred to hospitals and retail pharmacies.

“I don’t want to be criticizing the mayor in any way,” the governor said. “But he kept saying that they weren’t getting enough [doses]. And the [city] health department kept saying ‘We have way too much. Please send them somewhere else.’”

Hogan suggested that Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, who took office in December, “talk to his health department.”

A short time later, Scott went before cameras at City Hall to refute Hogan’s charges, which he called “categorically untrue.”

The mayor said doses have been redeployed to Baltimore hospitals and pharmacies as part of an “equitable and rapid” strategy to reach residents across the city. The state has approved the city’s requests, Scott added.

He also denied turning down vaccination funding, saying the city prefers to deal directly with FEMA, from whom it can seek 100% reimbursement.

“The governor is aware that this is false but continues to repeat it,” Scott alleged. “While the governor continues to go back and forth about petty politics, people are dying from the virus.”

Health Commissioner Letitia Dzirasa said the use of hospitals and pharmacies helps residents who aren’t able to negotiate an online sign-up system which she likened to “a Hunger Games-style competition.”

“It allows us to ensure our doses are going to city residents who are eligible but that have been left behind by the state’s rollout to date,” she said.

The Hogan administration’s claims about the city first surfaced on Wednesday.

Scott called them a “Jedi mind trick” and a “distraction.”

By Bruce DePuyt

Enviro Congressional Scorecard: Good Grades for Dems, a Zero for Rep. Harris

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The League of Conservation Voters released its annual congressional scorecard Thursday, and the Maryland delegation lined up about as expected:

Six House Democrats — Reps. Steny H. Hoyer, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie B. Raskin, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, John P. Sarbanes and David J. Trone — received perfect 100% scores. Rep. Anthony G. Brown (D) got 95% on the scorecard, and the state’s two senators, Benjamin L. Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, both Democrats, scored 92% grades.

Rep. Andy Harris

The lone Republican in Maryland’s congressional delegation, Rep. Andrew P. Harris, got a zero.

Harris’ lifetime score from LCV is 3%, while the Democrats’ range from 82% (Hoyer) to 99% (Raskin).

“President Biden has wasted no time putting climate at the top of his agenda to protect our future,” Maryland LCV’s executive director, Kim Coble, said in a statement. “Thankfully we have representatives who have stood up for Maryland’s values and put our future first. But Representative Andy Harris continues to side with corporate polluters over Maryland’s health and environment.”

According to LCV, the scores were tabulated using 21 House votes that advanced pro-environmental and pro-democracy bills, provisions, and government funding. In the Senate, for the fourth year in a row, the majority of the 13 scored votes were based on nominations both to the federal bench and the Trump administration.

The scorecard also includes votes on removing public monuments to racism and policing and criminal justice reform. LCV leaders say racism and environmental justice issues are increasingly intertwined.

Nationally, the U.S. Senate, which was under Republican control in 2020, had a 46% score from LCV. The House, which was in Democratic hands, scored 59% collectively.

“In an incredibly difficult and unprecedented year and with the most anti-environmental president ever, pro-environment members of the 116th Congress paved the way for transformational action on climate and environmental justice,” said LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld.

By Josh Kurtz