Washington, D.C. – The Railway Supply Institute (RSI) issued the following statement today from Nicole Brewin, Vice President of Government & Public Affairs, encouraging railway suppliers to be included in early recipient groups of the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Throughout the pandemic, railway supply workers across the country have provided essential services to support our passenger and freight railroads as they deliver people, food, fuel, medicine, and other supplies that have sustained our nation’s pandemic response and economic recovery. Many of these 125,000 workers have been identified by the Department of Homeland Security as part of the essential critical infrastructure workforce and continue to put themselves at greater risk in order to keep our critical manufacturing and transportation services operational.
“Today, we submitted comments to the Centers for Disease Control and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) urging the Advisory Committee to consider railway suppliers in the Phase 1B distribution of the vaccine. The availability of a vaccine for these workers would significantly enhance this industry’s ability to perform its duty to maintain the essential rail supply chain and provide services to support critical rail operations while also ensuring the health, safety, and well-being of our workers and the residents of the communities in which we live and work.”
About the Railway Supply Institute (RSI)
The Railway Supply Institute (RSI) is a trade association representing more than 160 companies involved in the manufacture of products and services in the freight car, tank car, locomotive, maintenance-of-way, communications and signaling, and passenger rail industries. RSI connects members to their customers and partners, supports the improvement of the industry, assists members in the global marketplace, and represents the industry during the regulatory and legislative process. For more information visit www.rsiweb.org, follow RSI on Twitter and join the RSI LinkedIn group.