Biden publicly receives second dose of coronavirus vaccine

President-elect Joe Biden publicly received his second dose of the vaccine for the novel coronavirus on Monday in a continued bid to bolster public confidence in the inoculation. 

“My number one priority is getting vaccine into people’s arms, like I just did today, as rapidly as we can,” Biden, wearing a black face mask, told reporters immediately after receiving his second dose of the vaccine produced by Pfizer and BioNTech.

The president-elect also said he planned to release more details about his plan to combat the coronavirus on Thursday. He is scheduled to meet virtually with advisers on the coronavirus Monday afternoon, Biden said.

Biden received the second dose of the vaccine at ChristianaCare hospital in Newark, Del., the same location where he received his first dose three weeks ago. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends individuals wait roughly three weeks between doses.

Biden and other officials from both parties have received the vaccine in public in order to instill confidence in it and assure Americans that it is both safe and effective. Vice President Pence was among the first to publicly receive the vaccine; President Trump, who fell ill with the coronavirus in October, has not been publicly vaccinated.

Biden transition spokesperson Jen Psaki said last week that 35 individuals who will be in close proximity to Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will also be vaccinated soon. Harris, who received her first dose of the Moderna vaccine publicly shortly after Biden, is also expected to receive her second dose soon. 

Biden has set the goal of administering 100 million doses in his first 100 days in office, and has criticized the Trump administration for moving too slowly in releasing vaccines. The current administration fell far short of its goal of vaccinating 20 million by the end of 2020.

Biden plans to release almost all vaccine doses immediately once his administration takes over, a spokesman said last week, a shift from the Trump administration’s decision to hold half of the vaccine supply for second doses.