Vice President Mike Pence got a TV broadcast COVID-19 vaccination Friday morning, making him the most prominent government official to do so publicly. Second lady Karen Pence and Surgeon General Jerome Adams also received a vaccination.
President-elect Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden will receive their first dose of the vaccine on Monday. Elected Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, will receive theirs the following week.
That said the spokesman for house speaker Nancy Pelosi Friday afternoon she got her first dose of the vaccine. Senate Leader Mitch McConnell tweeted that he had also received his first dose.
“I didn’t feel anything,” Pence said in brief remarks after receiving the vaccine. Pence also praised Operation Warp Speed, the government’s program to produce a vaccine.
“Make no mistake about it, it’s a medical miracle,” Pence said of the vaccine, which began circulating this week. “I also believe history will show that this week was the beginning of the end of the coronavirus pandemic.”
CHERISS MAY / REUTERS
Pence also encouraged Americans to continue to practice social aloofness, washing hands regularly, and wearing a mask.
“The way through this difficult time is vigilance and a vaccine,” Pence said.
Pence, head of the White House Task Force Coronavirus, has taken on much of the day-to-day work on COVID-19, even though the president continues to focus publicly on the election. It’s not clear when Mr. Trump, who has already had COVID-19, will get the vaccine.
In a statement Wednesday evening, the vice president said he and his wife, Karen Pence, are taking the vaccine publicly to instill confidence in it, as millions of Americans remain skeptical of the thoroughly tested products.
The vaccination took place in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, the building in which Pence’s office is located.
President-elect Joe Biden is also expected to receive the vaccine soon.
Pfizer’s vaccine is currently being distributed to high-risk health professionals, and Moderna’s vaccine is also expected to reach guns before the end of the month.