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The widely respected scientist rolled up the left sleeve of his shirt and said he was injecting himself “as a symbol to the rest of the country that I have extreme confidence in the safety and efficacy of this vaccine.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, raises his thumb after receiving his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at the National Institutes of Health on December 22, 2020 in Bethesda, Maryland. Image: AFP
WASHINGTON – Anthony Fauci, America’s leading infectious disease specialist, received his COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday along with other senior officials and six healthcare workers at an event streamed live at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The widely respected scientist rolled up the left sleeve of his shirt and said he was injecting himself “as a symbol to the rest of the country that I have extreme confidence in the safety and efficacy of this vaccine.”
“I want to encourage everyone who has the opportunity to get vaccinated so that we can have a veil of protection over this country, to end this pandemic,” he added.
He then gave a thumbs-up sign and applauded his colleagues as he left the stage of an auditorium at the NIH headquarters in Bethesda, a suburb of Washington.
The 79-year-old, who continues to practice as a physician, was one of the first Americans to receive injections developed by Moderna and the NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which he has led since 1984.
NIH Director Francis Collins and Health Secretary Alex Azar also received their vaccinations at the ceremony.
“I want the American people to know that I have absolute and complete confidence in the integrity and independence of the processes used by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) to approve these vaccines,” said Azar, a political appointee in the Trump administration. .
Before them, six healthcare workers received their vaccinations, many looking excited as they explained why they chose to get vaccinated.
“I work directly with Covid patients so I felt like I had a chance, why not?” Said Nurse Naomi Richardson.
GROWING CONFIDENCE
It comes as a new survey showed that Americans’ willingness to receive a coronavirus vaccine has increased since the first two were authorized.
The USA TODAY / Suffolk University survey, conducted Wednesday through Sunday, showed 46% said they were willing to get vaccinated as soon as possible, a significant jump from the 26% who responded similarly in late October.
Another 32% said they would wait for others to receive the injections before doing it themselves.
Twenty percent remain unconvinced. Experts say that 70-75% of the population will need to be vaccinated to achieve the immunity of the population.
Earlier, Fauci paid tribute to his colleagues, saying that the vaccine “essentially had its origin in the fundamental basic research that takes place here at NIH.”
NIAID scientists helped develop the mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid) technology used in the Moderna vaccine, which gives the human body the genetic instructions it needs to create a coronavirus surface protein.
This simulates a natural infection and trains the immune system to be ready for when it encounters the real virus.
Traditional vaccines use weakened or inactivated forms of microbes and take much longer to develop and expand.
The United States expects to immunize 20 million people this month, with long-term care residents and healthcare workers at the front of the line.
On Sunday, a committee of experts said that people over 75 should be vaccinated next along with 30 million “essential front-line workers,” including teachers, grocery clerks and police.
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