Ports around the U.S. are rolling out vaccines for seafarers, extending a lifeline to thousands of mostly foreign workers who've spent the pandemic isolated aboard ships ensuring goods kept trading across a battered global economy.
From Boston to Houston and Los Angeles, and even in smaller trade gateways like Gulfport, Miss., local health officials and nonprofits are boarding container ships, tankers and other cargo carriers to administer COVID-19 shots or, when possible, shuttling crews to nearby pharmacies and clinics.
The preferred vaccine for maritime workers: the one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot, because they're often docked for just a day or two.