Capitol Police: All officers will be vaccinated for COVID-19

The U.S. Capitol Police announced Thursday that it has secured enough coronavirus vaccine doses to inoculate every member of the force.

“Thanks to the efforts of the Congressional Leadership, especially House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Administration, enough doses of the COVID-19 vaccines have been secured to vaccinate all USCP personnel,” acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman said in a statement Thursday.

Pittman added that the department “expects delivery of the vaccines to occur shortly, and is already working with the Office of Attending Physician on logistics to administer them to our employees as quickly and safely as possible.”

It was not immediately clear which vaccine will be used. Both Pfizer and Moderna have released vaccines for the public, and others, including one from Johnson & Johnson, are in the midst of trials.

The Capitol Police did not immediately respond to a request for further comment from The Hill. 

The news of the upcoming vaccinations comes amid fears that officers could have been exposed to the coronavirus during the Jan. 6 riot on Capitol Hill. Those fears were heightened after hundreds of National Guardsmen contracted the virus as they protected the Capitol complex in the days before and after President Biden’s inauguration.

It is still unclear how many officers have been exposed or were infected with the virus, but Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said at her weekly press conference Thursday that it was clear members of the Capitol Police had been “severely affected.”

“It was clear that the Capitol Police had been severely affected by COVID, separate and apart from everything else that’s going on,” she said. “Like the rest of the country, they have been severely affected by COVID.”

Pelosi said the recommendation to vaccinate all Capitol Police members came from retired Gen. Russel Honoré, who is leading an external review of Capitol complex security in the aftermath of the January mob.

Pelosi also honored the late Officer Brian Sicknick, who died from injuries sustained during the riot, as a “martyr.” Sicknick laid in honor in the Capitol on Wednesday, and Pelosi said two other officers who died by suicide after the insurrection would also be honored. 

“The Department is grateful for the continued support of the Congressional community, especially during these unprecedented times, and I am tremendously grateful for the dedication of our officers who have worked tirelessly and sacrificed to uphold our mission,” Pittman said.