My1sttoday: President Joe Biden receives his first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, at “Christiana-Care” Christiana Hospital in Newark Delaware on Monday afternoon.
Tabe Mase, a nurse practitioner at ChristianaCare hospital in Delaware, administered the first dose of the vaccine produced by Pfizer and BioNtech to President Biden.
With his wife, Jill, by his side, Biden received the vaccination publicly as part of a growing effort to show Americans that the vaccines are safe and necessary for the nation to emerge from the pandemic.
“I am doing this to demonstrate that people should be prepared when it’s available to take the vaccine,” Biden, wearing a black face mask, said after receiving the vaccine. “There’s nothing to worry about.”
He thanked front-line health workers and scientists and gave credit to the Trump administration for Operation Warp Speed, the program aimed at speeding the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, and urged Americans to heed the advice of public health experts by wearing masks, social distancing and avoiding travel during the holidays.
“We’re still in the thick of this,” President Biden said.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious diseases expert, along with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, National Institutes of Health Director Frances Collins and other front-line health workers are expected to receive the Moderna vaccine Tuesday morning.