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- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced he would receive the coronavirus vaccine “in the coming days” to boost public confidence in the shot.
- “The only way to beat this pandemic is for us to follow the advice of health professionals across our country: get yourself vaccinated and continue to follow CDC guidelines,” McConnell said in the statement.
- McConnell is the latest of a number of prominent politicians who are planning to receive the vaccine to boost public confidence in shooting – including President-elect Joe Biden, Vice President Mike Pence and former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
- Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has announced that he will receive the coronavirus vaccine “within the next few days” to demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine.
The Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for emergency use last Friday – the first vaccine to be given the green light in the United States.
Shipments of the vaccine were rolled out overnight Sunday for administration to frontline healthcare workers, and a number of prominent figures volunteered to publicly receive the vaccine to boost public confidence in its safety.
In a statement released Thursday, McConnell said he was eligible to get the vaccine “due to government continuity requirements.”
Along with frontline healthcare workers, Congress will also be among the first to receive a shipment of the coronavirus vaccine, Politico reported.
“Vaccines for agencies and federal officials in Washington have arrived at Walter Reed Medical Center in recent days,” according to the Politico report, “and thousands of doses are expected to be designated for the House and Senate, although the offices of congressional leadership have said they have no information to provide. “
Capitol Hill physician Brian Monahan wrote in a letter to McConnell, obtained by Politico, that Capitol Hill will receive “a specific number of doses of COVID 19 vaccine to meet long-standing requirements for the continuity of government operations.” It was not immediately clear which other members of Congress would also receive the vaccine alongside McConnell.
“The small number of COVID 19 vaccines that will be provided to us reflects a fraction of the first tranche of vaccine as it is distributed nationwide,” Monahan continued, citing the Politico report.
McConnell said he was “disappointed to see early public sentiment that shows some reluctance to receive a vaccine,” citing data from an AP-NORC poll showing a quarter of American adults don’t know if they will receive the vaccine.
“The only way to beat this pandemic is for us to follow the advice of health professionals across our country: get yourself vaccinated and continue to follow the CDC’s guidelines,” McConnell said in the statement.
A polio survivor, the Republican senator from Kentucky said he understands “both the fear of an illness and the extraordinary promise of hope that vaccines bring” but hopes Americans will accept the vaccine.
“Even with a vaccine, I will continue to follow CDC guidelines by wearing a mask, practicing social distancing and washing my hands frequently,” McConnell said. “I strongly encourage everyone to continue to follow these important guidelines. This is the only way to beat COVID-19 once and for all.”
Read more: Secret Service experts speculate in panel discussions on how Trump could be kicked out of the White House if he doesn’t budge on inauguration day
McConnell is the latest of a number of prominent politicians who are planning to receive the vaccine to boost public confidence in the shot which has been produced in record timing.
Earlier this month, former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton volunteered to publicly receive the vaccine to show that the vaccine is safe. President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President Mike Pence also followed suit earlier this week.
“I don’t want to get ahead, but I want to make sure that we demonstrate to the American people that it is safe to take,” Biden told reporters Wednesday. “When I do, I will do it publicly, so that you all can witness my accomplishment.”
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