Biden takes 5th COVID-19 vaccine shot, urges Americans to get booster for holiday season

The President of the United States, Joe Biden on Tuesday received the updated COVID-19 booster dose at a White House event, urging Americans to do the same. Top government health officials as well as the heads of some of the biggest pharmacy chains in the country were there with Biden, who also welcomed a number of new initiatives launched by the firms to speed up vaccinations and stop the disease.

According to a statement from the White House, Biden said, “I’m here today with my COVID team, as well as leaders from some of America’s top pharmacies: Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Albertsons.”  

While talking about the vaccination at the White House, Biden said, “We’re here with a simple message: Get vaccinated. Update your vac- — your COVID vaccine.” He further claimed, “It’s incredibly effective.” Moreover, he revealed that not enough people are understanding the need for a booster.

“We’ve got to change that so we can all have a safe and healthy holiday season. That’s why I’m getting my shot updated today (October 25),” the President said.   

Additionally, the comments of the US President came as government data showed that the number of new shots countrywide has started to slow down following weeks of acceleration, CBS News reported. 

According to CDC statistics from last week, over 19 million Americans have reportedly received an updated COVID booster injection thus far. With up to 226 million Americans potentially eligible for boosters, it equates to almost 9% of the population. 

'New variants have emerged here in the US': Joe Biden 

Joe Biden further cautioned by saying that this virus is ever-evolving. He highlighted, “New variants have emerged here in the US and around the world." The US President addedd, “And let’s start with the COVID updates — vaccines. They’re designed to fight a specific Omicron strain that is dominant in our country right now.” 

According to the CBS News report, the updated booster shots, which target two Omicron subvariants that are the most prevalent variants in the US, started to be distributed in the autumn. This month, the Biden administration unveiled a brand-new marketing campaign to support vaccinations. Furthermore, unreviewed preliminary data testing the updated booster dose against the BA.5 variant indicate that they at least induce comparable antibody responses to the shots' original composition. 

This autumn, every American who has had a vaccination and is at least five years old, and whose previous dose of the COVID-19 vaccine was at least two months ago, is eligible to obtain an updated booster injection. 

It is pertinent to mention that President Biden received his most recent vaccination around three months after testing positive for the virus in the summer. Americans who have recently contracted the virus should wait three months before receiving the booster, according to the CDC. 

In addition, Biden reiterated the White House COVID response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha's call for Americans to have their coronavirus boosters and yearly flu shots before Halloween. 

In the meantime, the White House acknowledged that India is a significant vaccine producer for the globe and that it was essential to the worldwide supply of COVID-19 vaccinations. At a press conference on Tuesday, Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator, told the media that "because of its incredible manufacturing capacity, (India) has been a major exporter of vaccines", PTI reported. 

(Image: AP/ Pixabay)