Written by Brandon Lee Romo<\/p>\n
Governor Gavin Newsom awarded Blue Shield of California a no-bid contract to run vaccine distribution in the state, which comes as no surprise as Blue Shield has been a regular donor to the Governor for some time. According to California Healthline, Blue Shield has donated just under $23 million to Newsom\u2019s campaigns over the last 16 years.<\/span><\/p>\n Unfortunately, this decision is expected to cost California an extra $2 billion. According to figures released by Newsom\u2019s Department of Finance, California is projected to spend over $15 billion through 2022. California also just agreed to a two-month, $13 million contract with the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company in order to assist both the state and Blue Shield with vaccine distribution.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think having Blue Shield step in is going to get teachers vaccinated any quicker. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to get the 70-year-old Black folks vaccinated any quicker. \u2026 And they\u2019re not doing it for free,\u201d said Democrat State Senator Sydney Kamlager. <\/span><\/p>\n Increasing amounts of public health officials and lawmakers have stated that Blue Shield is by no means the right choice. As stated by the Department of Public Health, just eight counties and one city have signed agreements with Blue Shield. Kern County was the lone county of those eight to sign a contract with Blue Shield directly. The remaining jurisdictions signed a memorandum of understanding with the State of California to take away some of Blue Shield\u2019s authority and divert it back to local public health officials. <\/span><\/p>\n