Jen Psaki says Joe and Jill Biden will 'follow the guidelines' if Americans require booster shots - and says the US has enough for supply for the entire eligible population
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will get a third COVID-19 vaccine dose if that's what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention prescribes.
'Certainly if they are recommended, once a formal announcement or briefing is done, they will certainly plan to follow the guidelines,' Psaki said.
On Wednesday, Biden's COVID team is holding a briefing, with U.S. health authorities expected to announce that Americans should receive a third shot of vaccine eight months after their second shot, according to two people who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
Psaki was asked Tuesday if Americans should be getting third doses when global vaccination rates still aren't very high.
She called that a 'false choice.'
'We can do both,' Psaki said. 'And the United States is far and away the biggest contributor to the global supply, the global fight against COVID. We will continue to be the arsenal for vaccines around the world.'
'We also have enough supply and have long planned for enough supply should it be needed for the eligible population,' the press secretary added.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki answered 'certainly if they are recommended' to a question about whether President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden would receive a third COVID-19 vaccine shot
President Joe Biden is seen receiving his first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on December 21. If U.S. health authorities announce what they're expected to - a third dose booster eight months after the second dose - Biden could receive a fresh shot next month
First lady Jill Biden received her vaccines the same day as her husband, but didn't take the shots before cameras. Here she's seen in Hawaii at a pop-up vaccine clinic at a high school where she encouraged members of the community to get their COVID-19 shots
The move is being driven by both the highly contagious variant and preliminary evidence that the vaccine´s protective effect starts dropping within months.
Last week, U.S. health officials recommended boosters for some people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients and organ transplant recipients.
If the shots are expanded as expected to other Americans, among the first to receive them could be health care workers, nursing home residents and other older people.
The 78-year-old president and 70-year-old first lady received their first COVID Pfizer doses on December 21 and second doses on January 11.
The then president-elect had cameras watch him get the shot.
Jill Biden opted to get her shots off-camera.
That means both Bidens could be due for a third COVID vaccine shot as early as next month.
On Wednesday after Dr. Anthony Fauci and other top medical experts give a briefing, Psaki said Biden would also make remarks.
'I would also note for your planning that you can expect to hear from the president as well, following their briefing,' she told reporters at Tuesday'a briefing.
Biden plans to return early from Camp David Tuesday night amid the current Afghanistan crisis.