Historic US COVID Vaccination Drive Begins; Nurse Gets First Jab

New York: The biggest vaccination drive in American history got underway on Monday, with a critical care nurse becoming the first person in the US to be vaccinated for COVID-19, providing a glimmer of hope as the country nears the grim milestone of nearly 3,00,000 coronavirus deaths.

Frontline nurse Sandra Lindsay was administered the shot developed by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, in Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, on Monday.

New York state governor Andrew Cuomo said the pandemic has been horrific.

“It was a modern-day battlefield and that's why the word heroes is so (sic) appreciate for what you did. The vaccine is the weapon that will end the war. It is the beginning of the last chapter of the book,” Cuomo said just before Lindsay was given the vaccination.

Cuomo clapped as he watched Lindsay take the vaccination shot.

Lindsay said she feels hopeful and relieved and healing is coming.

“I hope this marks the beginning of the end of a very painful time in our history,” she said, adding that she wants to instil confidence in the public that the vaccine is safe.

She stressed that while there is light at the end of the tunnel, people still need to continue to wear their masks, and maintain social distance. She encouraged everyone to take the vaccine.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had allowed the emergency authorisation of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on Friday, as the death toll in the US approached 3,00,000.

“First Vaccine Administered. Congratulations USA! Congratulations WORLD!” US President Donald Trump said in a tweet.

“Stay hopeful brighter days lie ahead,” President-elect Joe Biden tweeted.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said that he would be among those getting a vaccine.

"People will believe much more in the vaccine if the CEO is getting vaccinated," he said on CNN on Monday.

The first trucks carrying the COVID-19 vaccine for widespread use in the U.S. pulled out of a Pfizer manufacturing plant in Michigan on Sunday, en route to 636 predetermined locations, amid a botched government response that has made the US the worst-hit country in the world.

With the winter holidays still ahead, experts warn that the pandemic could continue to get worse before the larger public receives the vaccination.

Operation Warp Speed chief advisor Dr Moncef Slaoui has said that they plan to have about 14 million doses of vaccine available and distributed in the US by the end of this year. Plans will be implemented on war footing to immunise 100 million people by February.

State and local authorities make their own decisions on who gets vaccinated and when. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that frontline health-care workers and residents of long-term care facilities should get the vaccine first.

To be fully effective, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is given as two shots administered 21 days apart. A two-dose regimen of the vaccine has an efficacy of 95% in people aged 16 and older, though the FDA briefing documents also note that the vaccine appears to provide "some protection" against COVID-19 after just one dose.

Also read: Pfizer Vaccine’s Price May Be Throwing off Indian Government, Report Says

Despite the positive news on the vaccine front, the US is still battling overcrowded hospitals and record-breaking daily case counts as the nation nears another sad milestone, that is, 3,00,000 deaths.

As of December 13, more than 16 million cases have been confirmed in the US.

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