Hobbs defies federal limits on COVID vaccines with new executive order

Gov. Katie Hobbs issued an executive order Thursday that expands access to the COVID-19 vaccine, adding to a growing list of states that are bucking the federal government’s efforts to limit access to the updated shot. 

“We are taking action to protect the health care freedom of Arizonans,” Hobbs said in a press release announcing the order. “Vaccines are critical tools that safeguard public health and prevent serious illness. Arizonans and their doctors deserve the freedom to access the COVID vaccine if it is right for them. With this Executive Order, we are following the science and ensuring that Arizonans have access to vaccines to keep themselves and their families safe.”

The order specifically directs the Arizona Department of Health Services and the state Board of Pharmacy to make the COVID vaccine more broadly accessible to any Arizonan who may want them. But it also goes beyond that and applies to all vaccines in general. 

It allows ADHS to issue a “standing order” that can serve as a prescription for the COVID vaccine as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent anti-vaxxer, and the FDA have moved to make the new vaccine only available without a prescription to those 65 and older. 

Hobbs’ executive order also directs the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions to coordinate with health insurers to make sure that the vaccine is covered for Arizonans. 

Arizona is one of 12 states that has been seeing higher positivity rates for a new variant of the virus that has seen emergency room visits surging among all age groups.