On Saturday, Vice President Kamala Harris received the third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. She had been jabbed with the first dose of the Moderna vaccine in December and took the second one this January. Although the CDC recommends a booster shot for those who are above 65 or those who are immunocompromised due to underlying conditions, Americans who are below 65 can get the third dose, if their job makes them vulnerable to catching the infection.
The Vice President is 57 years old. Her job entails travel as well as interaction with several people in different circumstances. The White House said that this was the reason why she took the third shot. She took a booster shot of the Moderna vaccine on Saturday afternoon.
She told reporters that she wanted everybody to get a shot when they were eligible. She said that “vaccines are free they’re safe and they will save your life,” according to a report by the Daily Mail. She also encouraged those who were eligible to get a booster shot to take it, in a post on Twitter.
President Joe Biden was among the early recipients of the booster dose. He took a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on September 27. He was eligible as he is 78 years old though he often jokes that he is much younger. He said that the COVID-19 vaccine “can save your life” and “the lives of those around you,” according to a report by Forbes.
Latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 16.6 million Americans have received a booster shot. It also reported that over 221 million Americans had taken at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. This is approximately 66.7 percent of the nation’s population.
Americans are eligible to take a booster of their choice, six months after the second dose of a two dose vaccine and two months after the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. According to a recommendation from the CDC, they are allowed to choose their third shot, effectively allowing mix and match of vaccines. Pfizer-BioNTech booster vaccines were available by late September and Moderna and Johnson & Johnson booster shots have been available from last week.
