Top US officials expected to get COVID-19 vaccine this week
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senior U.S. officials will begin receiving coronavirus vaccines this week as part of updated federal continuity of government plans that now include terrorism and pandemics as threats to the nation, and its leaders.
The effort comes after President Donald Trump tweeted on Sunday that White House aides should receive the COVID-19 vaccine “somewhat later in the program.” Still, doses are expected to be administered at the White House, Capitol Hill and other facilities within the week, according to senior administration officials.
Trump’s statement about moving more slowly was only expected to affect priority vaccination for a small subset of the hundreds, if not more, officials who are to be inoculated with the Pfizer vaccine, which received emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration on Friday.
Public distribution of the shot is initially limited to front-line health workers and people in nursing homes and long-term care facilities
The exact number and role of officials set to receive the vaccine is classified, according to senior administration officials. It is not expected to include Trump and Vice President Mike Pence themselves at this point. Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have yet to be informed how many doses they will receive and have yet to develop a vaccination plan, one official said.
The full rollout is being coordinated by the National Security Council, officials said, in concert with the White House Medical Unit, the Department of Homeland Security, the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Senior officials across all three branches of government will receive vaccinations pursuant to continuity of government protocols established in executive policy,” National Security Council spokesperson John Ullyot said Sunday....
