Vice President-elect Kamala Harris received her first dose of a coronavirus vaccine on camera at the United Medical Center in Washington, DC, on Tuesday – part of an effort by US health officials to persuade more Americans to get vaccinated.
“Let’s do this,” said Harris as Patricia Cummings, a registered nurse, administered the injection to her left arm.
“That was easy,” she exclaimed afterwards. “I barely felt it.”
Her husband, Doug Emhoff, also had a photo, although his was not on camera.
Each received the vaccine developed by Moderna, one of two vaccines COVID-19 to receive authorization for emergency use in the United States. The other was developed by Pfizer and BioNTech from Germany. Both vaccines require two injections, given about three weeks apart, to be effective. COVID-19 vaccines from other pharmaceutical companies are being evaluated.
“I trust the scientists,” said Harris. “It was the scientists who created and approved this.”
Harris, who is of black Jamaican and Asian American descent, said he wanted to “encourage everyone to get the vaccine”, especially those in the African American community who suspect it and are reluctant to do so.
She said she chose United Medical Center, the only public hospital in Washington, DC, for that reason.
“I want to remind people that they have reliable sources of health and that is where they can go,” she said.
President-elect Joe Biden received his first dose of a coronavirus vaccine on television last week. Biden’s wife, Jill, also received the vaccine.
Vice President Mike Pence and second lady Karen Pence received their first doses on television earlier this month, in part to publicize the White House’s Operation Warp Speed, the initiative to speed up several coronavirus vaccines. Pence is the head of the government’s coronavirus task force.
President Trump has not yet received the vaccine.
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