Tennessee vaccine program has 'critical gaps' as COVID-19 rebounds
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Department of Health has “critical gaps” in its vaccination program after two highly placed employees moved to other jobs in June, leaving the agency hamstrung as vaccination rates sputter and infections rise, according to an internal report obtained by The Tennessean, a part of Paste BN Network.
The employees were a senior epidemiologist who surveilled infectious diseases and served as an unofficial deputy to the state’s vaccine chief and another official who ran the state’s federally funded Vaccines for Children Program, which inoculates kids who are uninsured or enrolled in TennCare.
Both departures, which appear to be the result of routine turnover, have not been publicly reported until now. These departures were in advance of and in addition to the recent termination of the state’s vaccine chief, Dr. Michelle Fiscus, who was abruptly fired last week.
Fiscus said both employees, but particularly the epidemiologist, served central roles in the department that only became more essential during the pandemic. Their absences are even more significant in light of her termination, she said.
“(The epidemiologist) would definitely be the person now leading any kind of infectious disease mitigation response, and the vaccine side of things from COVID-19,” Fiscus said, adding later: “If someone calls with a suspected case of measles today, it is (her) job to drop everything and go figure out if it is a threat.”
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The Tennessean is not naming either official because they could not be reached for comment. The epidemiologist moved to a new job with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The other official transferred to another position in the Tennessee Department of Health that doesn’t directly pertain to vaccines.
While the loss of these employees may be routine, their absence has now been roped into an ongoing dispute between Fiscus and the health department.
After Fiscus was fired on July 12, she accused the agency of scapegoating her to appease Republican state lawmakers who have embraced anti-vaccine misinformation. The agency then released an internal memo justifying Fiscus' firing by alleging she was a poor manager, stating that "two of her most senior leaders have subsequently resigned.” Fiscus responded with a statement saying the employees didn't leave because of her and they remain “good friends” in frequent contact. Fiscus provided screenshots of recent text conversations with both officials.
COVID-19 infections are up, vaccination pace is way down
Regardless of why these vaccine officials left, the timing is terrible. The coronavirus pandemic is showing new life in Tennessee — spreading almost entirely among the unvaccinated — and the state’s vaccination rates have slowed to a snail’s pace.
As of Monday night, the average new infections reported each day had increased more than 310% since a low point on June 23. The count of active infections in the state more than quadrupled. Meanwhile, the state’s pace of new vaccinations dropped 85% since its peak in April.
The loss of these “senior leaders” left the health department with “critical gaps” in its immunization program, according to an internal report from July 8 obtained by The Tennessean. The document — officially named the COVID-19 Pandemic Vaccine Response Team Situation Report — is a bi-weekly report written by a group of health department leaders and circulated throughout the agency.
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This report also reveals how little the health department is telling the public about the behind-the-scenes struggles of the COVID-19 vaccination efforts. The report estimates Tennessee will not reach 50% vaccination until March and says an agency vendor failed to report the use of about 170,000 doses to the CDC, artificially deflating the state's vaccination statistics until the error was fixed on July 2. Additionally, this report was one of the first internal documents to reveal the health department was halting all adolescent vaccine outreach. The agency had not disclosed any of these developments to the public.
When asked for comment on the departures, the Tennessee Department of Health initially said it would not comment on confidential personnel matters. When pressed, the agency confirmed one employee left the department and the other currently worked a non-vaccine related job.
The agency did not answer questions about the “critical gaps” described in its internal report. The agency would not say if either of the employee's positions have been filled, despite having previously provided similar information to The Tennessean for past news articles.
Fiscus said the department was weeks to months away from filling both jobs as of last week.
Follow Brett Kelman on Twitter: @brettkelman.