Question:  In states with high numbers of new COVID cases (I’m thinking Florida), has the pace of vaccination begun to pick back up?

Answer: Let’s take a look!  Currently, the top five states with the highest new cases per population are: Louisiana (89 cases per 100,000 pop), Florida (74 cases per 100,00 pop), Arkansas (62 cases per 100,000 pop), Mississippi (50 cases per 100,000 pop), and Alabama (49 cases per 100,000 pop).  For comparison, Maryland has 7 cases per 100,000 pop and the US average is 24 cases per 100,000 pop.  In good news, after having reached a nadir in early July, daily vaccinations have picked up across the country, including in these five states.  Figure 1 shows the daily count of people receiving their first dose across these five states and in comparison to the overall country.  As you can see, since hitting a nadir in early July, the number of daily first doses received has been increasing, especially in places like Louisiana, Alabama, and Arkansas.  These states have a long way to go to reach substantial proportions of population vaccinated, but the recent trend is positive.  Vaccinations have indeed begun to pick back up.  

Figure 1. Trends in daily number of first doses in the US and 5 states (from CDC) red line= 7-day average