Joseph Robinette Biden

“ That’s why Vice President Harris also received her shot publicly.
We all know there is some history — there’s some hesitancy about taking this vaccine. We all know there’s a history in this country of having subjected certain communities to terrible medical abuses in the past. But if there’s one message to cut through to everyone in this country, it’s this: The vaccines are safe. Please, for yourself, your family, your community, this country, take the vaccine when it’s your turn and available. That’s how to beat this pandemic. ”

“ The fundamental basic elements are that, before you get the shot and after — if you get the shots and after — social distancing save lives, wearing masks saves lives, making sure that you wash your hands with hot water saves lives. This is not hyperbole. This is not a political statement. It’s a reality. The science has demonstrated that.
We also know that it’s one thing to have a vaccine available. The problem was, how do you get it into people’s arms? There’s not enough people to vaccinate. ”

“ Q President Biden, you’ve said that you think by the end of July is when we’ll have enough vaccines for all Americans. But when do you think all Americans, or a majority, will have actually gotten the vaccine? THE PRESIDENT: Well, all we got to do is do a little bit of the math. Getting the vaccine and having it available is not the same as putting it in someone’s arms. This is going to be a continuous rolling effort. So we’ll have had — we will have ordered, much of which will have been distributed, over 600 million doses by the end of July. ”

“ They understand we’re not going to get our economy back in shape and the millions of people back to work until we beat this virus.
That’s why the American Rescue Plan puts 160 million — billion dollars into more testing and tracing, manufacturing and distribution, and setting up vaccination sites — everything that’s needed to get vaccines into people’s arms, which is the most difficult logistical effort the United States has undertaken in peace time. It includes $4 billion for new manufacturing plants so we’re ready to manufacture vaccines in the future. ”

“ And for folks who aren’t near a pharmacy or a mass vaccination center, we’re deploying mobile clinics. These are special vehicles and pop-up clinics that meet folks where they live — folks who don’t have access to transportation to get the shots.
We’re also supplying vaccines to community health centers — federal community health centers — to reach those who are hit the hardest: black, Latinos, Native Americans, and rural communities, which have higher rates of COVID infections and deaths than any other group. ”

“ We know certain things are necessary: social distancing, smaller class sizes, ventilation, testing, and the possibility that staff, whether it’s the staff taking care of the sanitary conditions in the school, or simply — you’ve heard me say this before — bus drivers. To open the schools, we need more buses and bus drivers. We can’t put kids packed in a bus, sitting next to one another. ”

“ Talk about — everybody is — you know, most people are within five miles of a pharmacy. Well, if you’re living alone and you’re a 68-year-old woman, and you’re in a minority neighborhood, and there’s no bus service, you might as well be 500 miles away. That’s why we’re leading now — and, Gary, you talked to me about it — getting mobile vans to go out.
So we know the kinds of things that have to be done. But there has never ever, ever been a logistical challenge as consequence — as consequential as we’re trying to do. ”

“ Here in Michigan, we’re already partnering with community health centers, serving more than 370,000 patients in 11 cities across the state. That’s because you guys have pointed out where they were and why it was so important, and how we get to — as Gary talks about, get to the people most in need and the people most dying from COVID. This is important to ensure everyone is treated equally and those hardest hit get the care they deserve. ”

“ The vast majority of the American people — more than 70 percent of the American people, with all the polls you all conduct, including a majority of Republicans — want us to act, and act big and quickly and support the plan. ”

“ There’s a difference, for example, according to the science now, between kids between the ages of 3 and probably 12 years old, in terms of whether they can absorb and/or communicate the disease than it is for kids who are 15, 16, 17, and 18 years old who congregate more together. It’s harder in a high school than it is in a grammar school. ”

“ And as we increase supply, we’re carrying out a clear plan to get shots into the arms of 300 million Americans or more. And I know people want confidence that it’s safe. Well, I just toured, and that’s — where it’s being made. It takes more time to do the check for safety than it does to actually make the vaccine. ”

“ Major economists — left, right, and center — say we should focus on smart investments we can make now in jobs, in our people to prevent long-term economic damage to our nation and to strengthen the economic competitiveness going forward. ”

“ Right now, 24 million adults, 11 million children don’t have enough food to eat. And unless you think I’m exaggerating, think of those scenes you’ve seen on the television with cars lined up, which seemed like miles, to wait to have someone put a box of food in their trunk. ”

“ On our tour, I met a few of your nearly 3,000 workers, Albert: experts managing ingredients that come in from different cities and states; experts handling 3D modeling and artificial intelligence to ensure that every dose is properly crafted; experts ensuring an environ- — a sterile environment so that each vial — each and every one — is safe and free of contaminants. ”

“ You know, I — you’ve heard me say before — you know, my little granddaughter can use that cellphone of hers to do more in about 12 seconds than I can do it in an hour. But a lot of people aren’t able to — a lot of people who need the help. ”

“ I think it’s really important because of the psychological damage being done and the loss of time. A kid loses a semester when they’re in fifth grade — it means they’re not just a semester behind; they may be a year and a half behind. ”