President Biden pledged Tuesday that the United States will have enough COVID-19 vaccine doses for every adult in America by the end of May, moving up his administration’s previous timeline by two months.
The President made the remarks in a speech at the White House yesterday, cautioning that the doses will be available by end of May but that it would take longer to actually administer them to all Americans.
“That’s progress. But it’s not enough to have the supply. We need vaccinators — people to put the shots in people’s arms, millions of Americans’ arms,” Biden said, adding that his administration has brought back retired doctors and nurses, and deployed 1,500 medical personnel from FEMA to support local vaccination efforts.
The President also urged states to prioritize vaccinations for teachers in order to help schools reopen safely. “Let’s treat in-person learning like the essential service that it is, and that means getting essential workers — educators, school staff, child care workers — get them vaccinated immediately,” Biden said.
“There is light at the end of the tunnel, but we cannot let our guard down now to ensure victory is inevitable, we can’t assume that. We must remain vigilant, act fast and aggressively and look out for one another. That’s how we’re going to get ahead of this virus, get our economy going again and get back to our loved ones,” he added.
