Biden gives hope to Americans on anniversary of COVID-19 shutdown
March 11 marked the anniversary of the COVID-19 Shutdown. In honor of this, President Biden delivered a genuine and powerful speech that acknowledged our joint suffering, commended our perseverance, and ensured a newfound hope.
His speech opened with “While it was different for everyone, we all lost something. A collective suffering. A collective sacrifice. A year filled with the loss of life — and the loss of living for all of us. But, in the loss, we saw how much there was to gain in appreciation, respect, and gratitude. Finding light in the darkness is a very American thing to do. In fact, it may be the most American thing we do. And that’s what we’ve done.”
However, President Biden’s speech was filled with more than empowering words, he delivered genuine promises of leading us to a hopeful future in terms of vaccination progress and coming much closer to ending the pandemic
He stated “That’s why I’m using every power I have as President of the United States to put us on a war footing to get the job done. It sounds like hyperbole, but I mean it: a war footing.And thank God we’re making some real progress now” he continued by promising “Two months ago, the country — this country didn’t have nearly enough vaccine supply to vaccinate all or near all of the American public. But soon we will”
In terms of vaccination production, there are a variety of safe and effective approved vaccine manufacturers the government is working with namely Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and Merck. The government is working with them to manufacture and purchase hundreds of millions of these doses of vaccines. Even competitors such as Merck and Johnson and Johnson have put competition aside to jointly produce the new Johnson and Johnson vaccine.
Vaccination progress has also rapidly improved and will continue to. 65 percent of the 65 and over population have received their first vaccination . For those over 75 , that number is 70 percent. The government has also been strategically serving those in the hardest hit by the pandemic such as the Black, Latino, Native American, and rural communities. Most notably, President Biden announced that all adults over the age of 18 will be eligible to be vaccinated , which is much earlier than expected.
Although naming it …”One of the most complex operations we’ve undertaken as a nation in a long time” President Biden;s distribution strategy appears complex and effective. This strategy includes a plan to mobilize thousands of vaccinators such as active duty military, FEMA, retired doctors and nurses, administrators to administer the shots.
The government will do this by supporting nearly 600 federally supported vaccination centers that will include drive up service in stadiums and parking lots allowing you to never leave your car. They will also deploy more vehicles and pop- up clinics that will meet those difficult to reach people where they live. To aid the distribution process the government will launch a website in May that helps you find the nearest location to get a shot.
Given the continued success and progress in eventually ending the pandemic, Biden made a hopeful promise that “ if we do all this, if we do our part, if we do this together, by July 4th , there’s a good chance you, your families , and friends will be able to get together …” and in doing so it “will make this Independence Day something truly special, where we not only mark our independence as a nation, but we begin to mark our independence from this virus.
