Covid-19: Storm over USA vaccine.

The winter storm stretching across much of the country is causing widespread disruption in the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine. Clinics where shots were being given have closed and vaccine shipments have been stalled as snow and ice have grounded flights and turned highways dangerously slick.

The cancellations are just the latest hurdle in the U.S. vaccine rollout, which has been accelerating despite difficulties, delays and confusion: An average of about 1.7 million people are getting a shot daily, according to a New York Times database. Several states, including New York and California, have expanded eligibility despite a limited supply.

Many of the closures and cancellations have been in the South, where the storm was particularly fierce — and where the pace of vaccinations in several states has lagged behind the national average. On Monday, vaccine appointments were rescheduled or canceled from Texas to Alabama to Kentucky.

The storm’s impact on vaccine distribution reached across the country. Health officials in Washington State, where the storm has come and gone, say they are dialing back vaccination plans later this week because they anticipate delays in the delivery of new doses. Governor Parson of Missouri said that the weather will likely interfere with some vaccine shipments to his state as well.

The interruptions appear likely to grow in the coming days, as the storm continues its path across the country. More closures already are being announced. Power outages, some of them intentional to ease taxing the electricity grid, have affected millions of people in Texas, Oregon, Virginia, Kentucky and elsewhere.

In Missouri, Gov. Mike Parson said on Monday that vaccination distribution run by the state would be brought to a halt through the rest of the week.

“Missouri is experiencing severe winter weather that makes driving dangerous and threatens the health and safety of anyone exposed to the cold,” Mr. Parson said in a statement.

In Alabama, hospitals have closed vaccination clinics, as have more than two dozen county health departments. In New Hampshire, state officials said vaccinations scheduled for Tuesday would be rescheduled canceled.

Last week, the Biden administration announced it had secured enough vaccine doses to inoculate every American adult, with 200 million more doses of vaccine lined up by the end of summer. In total, that would be enough vaccine to cover 300 million people with tens of millions of doses to spare.

And President Biden’s announcement arrived with a caveat. Many Americans won’t be vaccinated by the end of the summer because of logistical hurdles, such as overburdened local health departments that lack the staff or experience to carry out a vaccination campaign on such a big scale.

— Rick Rojas