Report by Paula Antolini August 24, 2021, 5:49PM EDT
Remarks by President Biden on the COVID-19 Response and the Vaccination Program include:
“The Delta variant is dangerous and spreading, causing a pandemic of the unvaccinated. That’s the pandemic of the vaccinated. And while we’re starting to see initial signs that cases may be declining in a few places, nationwide cases are still rising, especially among the unvaccinated.” … “As I’ve said before, the pandemic of the unvaccinated is a tragedy that is preventable. People are dying, and will die, who don’t have to.”
The speech was made on August 23, 2021, at 1:57 P.M. EDT, in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.
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Regarding FDA Vaccine Approval Announcement, Biden also said, “The Food and Drug Administration, the FDA, announced that it’s fully concluded its — its now thorough and independent scientific review. After a strict process, the FDA has reaffirmed its findings that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective, and the FDA has given its full and final approval.”
Biden added, “So let me say this loudly and clearly: If you have — if you’re one of the millions of Americans who said that they will not get the shot when it’s — until it has full and final approval of the FDA, it has now happened. The moment you’ve been waiting for is here, and it’s time for you to go get your vaccination and get it today. Today. It’s an important moment in our fight against the pandemic.”
“Those who have been waiting for full approval should go get your shot now,” Biden said, “Vaccination is free. It’s easy, it’s safe, and it’s effective. And it’s convenient.” … “So, please, get your shot today. There’s no time to waste.”
Biden said scientists “looked at the mountains of clinical data — clinical trial data and the safety and efficacy data, and concluded, without question, the vaccine was safe and effective for emergency use in December.”
“The FDA approval is the gold standard,” Biden said.
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Regarding hospitalizations and deaths, Biden said, “Across the country, virtually all of the COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths continue to be among the unvaccinated. That’s worse in states where vaccination rates are overall low. But even in states where many people are vaccinated, the unvaccinated are still at risk. Let me be clear: There are cases where vaccinated people do get COVID-19, but they are far less common than unvaccinated people getting COVID-19. And most importantly, their conditions are far less severe. The overwhelming majority of people in the hospital have COVID-19 are — almost all of those dying from COVID-19 are not vaccinated. Not vaccinated. If you’re fully vaccinated — both shots, plus two weeks — your risk of severe illness from COVID-19 is very, very, very low.”
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Regarding vaccinations and children, Biden said, “Now, I know that parents are concerned about COVID-19 cases among their children. I’ll be addressing this soon with Secretary Cardona to discuss how to get our kids back to school safely. Cases among children are still rare, and severe cases among children are very, very rare. But I know that parents are thinking about their own kids, and it’s not as reassuring as anyone would like it to be. So let me say this as parents — to the parents: As you have — you have the tools. You have the tools to keep your child safer, and two of those tools, above all, are available to you. One, make sure that everyone around your child, who can be vaccinated, is vaccinated: parents, adults, teens. Two, make sure your child is masked when they leave home. That’s how we can best keep our kids safe.”
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Biden words about vaccine requirements for federal workers, the armed forces, people who work in federal medical facilities, and nursing home workers and incentives: “For the past several weeks, my administration has imposed new vaccine requirements on federal workers, the armed forces, people who work in federal medical facilities, and nursing home workers. Governors, mayors, and private sector leaders have done the same. We’ve also encouraged new incentives. For example, in some states, you get $100 if you get vaccinated. These new requirements and incentives are accelerating vaccinations once again, giving us the hope that we can put this Delta variant behind us in the weeks ahead.
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Biden quoted total vaccination figures as over 200 million Americans vaccinated, with 70 percent of the people over 18 at least one shot and 71 percent of everyone age 12 and older having their first shot, showing over 170 million are now fully vaccinated.
Biden said, “According to the experts from the Yale School of Public Health, the pace of our vaccination effort has saved over 100,000 lives and have prevented more than 450,000 hospitalizations.”
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Biden called on certain individuals to help. ” If you’re a business leader, a non-profit leader, a state or local leader who has been waiting for full FDA approval to require vaccinations, I call on you now to do that — require it. Do what I did last month and require your employees to get vaccinated or face strict requirements.
Biden closed with, in part, “We’re in the midst of a wartime effort to beat this pandemic. It’s one of the biggest and most complicated challenges in our history.
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