Iowa turns down 71% of available vaccines on weak demand

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa is turning down nearly three quarters of the vaccine doses available to the state from the federal government because demand for the shots remains weak. 

The Iowa Department of Public Health and Safety said the state asked the federal government to withhold 71% of the 105,300 vaccine doses that were available for the week of May 10.

Department spokeswoman Sarah Ekstrand says that 88 of Iowa’s 99 counties have told the state they don’t need all or part of their weekly vaccine allocations for that week.