Biden backs Minnesota vaccine approach

President Joe Biden commended Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Democratic and Republican governors from five other states Tuesday for "meeting the moment" and using creative outreach to increase COVID-19 vaccinations.

The president called Walz a "stand-up guy" and offered Minnesota and the other states as examples of how to make vaccine access easier for people who have been hesitant or have struggled to make time to get their shots.

"For that person who allegedly is an anti-vaxxer, it gets down to in many cases just a convenience," Biden said in a live video conference with the governors.

Walz discussed the creation of convenient opportunities in Minnesota, including a vaccination clinic at the St. Paul Saints home opener on Tuesday. On Monday night, a volunteer-led event resulted in 141 vaccinations of people outside Lake Monster Brewery in St. Paul who received a coupon for a free beer.

"It's not assuming these people are hesitant, [or] they're ideologically opposed," Walz said during the video conference with Biden. "It's trying to understand where they are at."

Walz commended efforts among tribal nations that have resulted in high vaccination rates and door-to-door outreach efforts that resulted in high vaccine uptake among workers in rural Minnesota food processing plants that were hit hard in the initial waves of the pandemic.

Walz said around 64% of Minnesotans 18 and older have received at least first doses of vaccine, bringing the state closer to Biden's goal of vaccinating 70% of adults by July 4.

The state has its own slightly broader goal of vaccinating 70% of all people 16 and older and is at 60.5% of that target. Walz has pledged to end the state mask mandate for public indoor places by July 1, or sooner if the state reaches that vaccination target.

Governors from six states shared their best practices and encouraged flexibility in the current phase of the national vaccination campaign.

"What was working a month ago isn't necessarily going to work today," Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said. He encouraged national leadership to motivate more vaccinations by showing that immunized people are safer to engage in more activities.

Biden agreed: "It's not only, you can hug your grandchild. You can do a lot more."

Maine Gov. Janet Mills discussed a new incentive program in which people who seek vaccine will receive vouchers to spend on retail shopping, fishing licenses, minor league baseball, auto racing or other activities.

Biden concluded the session by noting that the U.S. is receiving numerous requests from other countries to help them acquire more vaccine doses to confront the spread of COVID-19. The president said the U.S. has an interest in helping, because outbreaks in other countries can produces variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that could be more threatening.

"I'm not going to shortcut the United States of America, I promise," he said, "but we are going to be engaged in working with other countries."

Jeremy Olson • 612-673-7744