President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the COVID-19 response and the vaccination program within the East Room on the White Home in Washington, DC
President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the COVID-19 response and the vaccination program within the East Room on the White Home in Washington, DC on Could 17, 2021.
Nicholas Kamm | AFP | Getty Pictures
President Joe Biden warned Monday that coronavirus case numbers might rise as soon as once more in U.S. states with low Covid-19 vaccination charges.
For the primary time because the pandemic started over a 12 months in the past, Covid-19 instances are down in all 50 states, Biden introduced throughout a White Home press convention on the nation’s progress preventing the virus. That progress might nonetheless be reversed, he mentioned, particularly in states the place a low proportion of individuals have been vaccinated.
“We all know there can be advances and setbacks and we all know that there are various flare-ups that might happen,” Biden mentioned. “But when the unvaccinated get vaccinated, they’ll shield themselves and different unvaccinated folks round them.”
He mentioned it could be a unnecessary “tragedy” to see Covid instances rise amongst those that don’t get vaccinated.
“I wish to thank the American individuals who have stepped up and performed their patriotic responsibility and gotten vaccinated,” he mentioned.
Biden’s feedback Monday have been simply his newest push to get Individuals vaccinated as shortly as doable.
The Biden administration is pushing to get 70% of U.S. adults to obtain no less than one dose of a Covid vaccine and have 160 million adults absolutely vaccinated by July 4, a date Biden has mentioned he hopes will mark a turning level within the pandemic.
As of Monday, greater than 154 million American adults, or 59.7% of U.S. adults, have had no less than one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, in line with knowledge compiled by the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. Roughly 121 million American adults, or 47.1% of U.S. adults, are absolutely vaccinated, in line with the CDC.
States with the very best variety of doses administered per 100,000 folks embrace New Hampshire, New Mexico, Maine, Connecticut and Massachusetts, in line with the CDC knowledge.
Biden mentioned getting a Covid vaccine is “simple as ever,” with many vaccination websites throughout the U.S. providing walk-ins.
On Thursday, the CDC introduced in up to date public well being steering that absolutely vaccinated folks now not have to put on a face masks or keep 6 ft away from others in most settings, whether or not open air or indoors. Many public well being specialists noticed the transfer as one other incentive from the administration to get vaccinated.
Earlier Monday, the White Home introduced that the U.S. plans to ship tens of millions of further Covid vaccine doses to overseas nations nonetheless being battered by the pandemic.
At the least 20 million doses of vaccines produced by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson can be shipped by the top of June, the White Home mentioned. That is on prime of 60 million doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine which can be additionally scheduled to ship by then, pending regulatory authorization within the U.S.