The Co-Chairs of the Congressional Haiti Caucus, Representatives Val Demings, Andy Levin, Yvette D. Clarke and Ayanna Pressley sent a letter to the White House addressed to Jeffrey Zients COVID-19 Recovery Team Coordinator, calling him for an immediate acceleration of the distribution of excess vaccines in Haiti, which so far “…has not been able to administer a single dose of any approved vaccines.”

Letter from the Representatives of the Congressional Haiti Caucus: :

“Dear Mr. Zients,

Thank you for your leadership in combatting the global COVID-19 pandemic. We are especially appreciative of your efforts to increase vaccine access through the Strategy for Global Vaccine Sharing. As the Co-Chairs of the Congressional Haiti Caucus, we respectfully request that the Administration exercise all authorities to facilitate the expedited donation of the COVID-19 vaccine to the Republic of Haiti.

While Haiti did not experience widespread infections last year, COVID-19 has surged in the last several months. The New York Timesreported on June 13,2021that the average number of new cases has doubled in the past two weeks to 153a day, a figure that many health experts believe is just a fraction of actual cases. Hospitals and the public health infrastructure have been quickly overwhelmedand many,like St. Luke Hospital in Port-au-Prince, have been forced to turn away patients.

Despite the sharp increase in cases, the Haitian government has not been able to administer asingle dose of any approved vaccines. We greatly appreciate the Administration’s allocation of COVID-19 vaccines for Haiti butremain concerned that the donations will not arrive in time to prevent further illness among priority populations,including health workers. Indeed, the United Nations’ Vaccine Market Dashboard has no scheduled COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to Haiti from COVAX or any other source.

The urgent need for vaccines in Haiti demands that our government use all authorities and flexibilities available under the law. We additionally call on the Administration to work with medical experts who have established relationships with the Haitian Ministry of Health and non-governmental organizations, including colleges and universities,to immediately allocate and distribute COVID-19 vaccines directly.

Under your leadership, the United States has made progress towards endingthe pandemic that would have been inconceivable months ago. We respectfully request that we continue this mission and provide immediate assistance to our close neighbor, the Republic of Haiti.

Sincerely,

VAL DEMINGS
Member of Congress

ANDY LEVIN
Member of Congress

YVETTE D. CLARKE
Member of Congress

AYANNA PRESSLEY
Member of Congress”