President Trump tweeted Sunday night that he's stopped an administration directive to give White House staff the COVID-19 vaccine as a priority, but he will get inoculated against the virus "at the appropriate time."
Why it matters: NIAID director Anthony Fauci says 75%–80% of Americans need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus to achieve herd immunity. Vaccine adoption is a matter of trust, and trust in most institutions has hit generational lows.
People working in the White House should receive the vaccine somewhat later in the program, unless specifically necessary. I have asked that this adjustment be made. I am not scheduled to take the vaccine, but look forward to doing so at the appropriate time. Thank you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 14, 2020
- National Institutes of Health director Francis Collins told NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday that vaccine skepticism was a "source of great concern for all of us," as he urged people to "disregard all those terrible conspiracy theories."
- National Security Council spokesperson John Ullyot cited vaccine safety perceptions as a reason in his announcement Sunday that U.S. officials across the country's three branches of government had been given top priority for inoculation.
Of note: President-elect Joe Biden said before the FDA issued an emergency use authorization for Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine he would get inoculated once it was deemed safe.
The big picture: The first batch of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccines left Michigan earlier Sunday.
- There are a limited number of the vaccines in production, and the CDC recommends priority is given to the highest-risk groups, including health care workers and long-term care facility residents.
By the numbers: Cases and deaths from the virus are continuing to soar across the U.S. Nearly 300,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and almost 16.3 million have tested positive, per Johns Hopkins.
Go deeper: Middle America is still racking up a ton of new coronavirus cases
