President Joe Biden is expediting the eligibility date for the COVID-19 vaccine. The President announced on Tuesday that the vaccine would be available to all adults on April 19.
“Let me be deadly earnest with you: We aren’t at the finish line. We still have a lot of work to do. We’re still in a life and death race against this virus,” the President said.
Starting April 19, eligible adults can go online to reserve their place in a virtual line for an appointment to be vaccinated.
“That doesn’t mean they will get it that day,” Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary, said. “It means they can join the line that day if they have not already done that beforehand.”
President Biden says that this administration will meet his goal of distributing 200 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in the first 100 days of his presidency. The President also warned that the new variants of the virus are spreading quickly. Some states are changing their vaccine eligibility deadlines to align with the President’s goals.
“That’s the way to beat this,” President Biden said. “Get the vaccination when you can.”
Vice President Kamala Harris spent Tuesday promoting the COVID-19 vaccine in Chicago.
“We can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Vice President Harris said.
During an interview with the National Press Club, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that there could be a surge in cases because of the new variants.
“That would be a setback for public health, but that would be a psychological setback too,” Dr. Fauci said. “We just don’t want to have to go back to really shutting things down. That would be terrible.”
Psaki announced during her daily briefing on Tuesday that over 90 million doses had been distributed in the past three weeks.
Pfizer and Moderna require two doses of the vaccine, taken weeks apart, and Johnson & Johnson requires only a single dose.
According to ABC 7 News, Pfizer is 95% effective in preventing COVID-19 cases with symptoms and 100% effective in preventing severe cases. Moderna follows closely behind with 94% efficacy. The CDC reported that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was 66.3% effective in preventing COVID-19 during clinical studies.
