Getty US President Joe Biden speaks to the media as he departs the White House in Washington, DC, on July 7, 2021 en route to Illinois.
President Joe Biden made a proposal to go “door to door” to get people vaccinated after falling short of his goal to have 70% of Americans partially vaccinated by July 4. He announced the door to door vaccine plan in his briefing Tuesday, July 6, 2021.
“We are continuing to wind down the mass vaccination sites that did so much in the spring to rapidly vaccinate those eager to get their first shot and their second shot for that matter, if they needed a second,” Biden said during his briefing in the South Court Auditorium at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building near the White House. “Now we need to go to community by community, neighborhood by neighborhood, and oft times door to door – literally knocking on doors – to get help to the remaining people protected from the virus.”
Biden had announced a goal of having 70% of U.S. adults inoculated with at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose by July 4. Just over 67% of American adults have received one vaccine, according to U.S. News & World Report. But so far the proposal is ruffling feathers of the vaccine hesitant, the very people the plan aims to sway.
Here’s what you need to know:
Biden’s Vaccine Plan Aims to Target Vaccine Hesitancy in Communities Amid Rising Cases of the Delta Variant
The U.S. continues to have a higher rate of vaccine opposition than any country tracked besides Russia. t.co/sIcPQn326C
Biden said in his briefing that his goals in going door to door are to address the concerns many unvaccinated people have over the COVID-19 vaccination. A poll from the Morning Consult asked those who do not plan to get vaccinated their reasons why. They cited concerns over whether the vaccine was more dangerous than the disease, skepticism over the drug companies and beliefs about government control.
Biden urged those holding out on receiving the vaccine to get vaccinated as the delta variant spreads. The Centers for Disease Control said the delta variant is highly transmissible and makes up about 25% of new coronavirus cases in the US. It is expected to become the dominant strain within weeks, according to CDC data.
You can watch Biden discuss his vaccine plan below:
“Right now, as I speak to you, millions of Americans are still unvaccinated and unprotected,” Biden said. “And because of that their communities are at risk, their friends are at risk, the people they care about are at risk. This is an even bigger concern because of the delta variant.”
Biden said the delta variant should “cause everybody to think twice,” specifically addressing “young people who may have thought that they didn’t have to be vaccinated.”
He said he wants future federal efforts over the summer to shift the focus toward communities and making the shot available at local pharmacies, doctors offices and worksites.
‘Americans Bristle at the Idea of Force’ Said a Fox News Contributor, & Memes From Right Wing Groups Show Their Thoughts on Door to Door Outreach
We’re now at the stage in our pandemic response where we are going door-to-door in areas with low vaccination rates. Outreach teams will be comprised of mobilizers sharing COVID-19 information, @MKEhealth staff administering vaccine, and @MilFireDept crew monitoring vaccinations.
Right wing and conservative groups were vocal about their opposition to door to door vaccine efforts on social media following the comments from Biden and his Press Secretary Jen Psaki.
A meme began circulating among conservative groups showing a man wrapped up in duct tape with the caption “door to door vaccine guy halfway through his first shift.”
Fox News contributor Bill McGurn spoke with Fox & Friends First Wednesday to address Biden’s comments about the proposed door to door vaccine outreach. He said that many Americans the plan aims to sway will view the outreach as force from the federal government. He said the proposal could work if those going door to door are known community members, not representatives of the federal government.
He said:
Modern liberalism seems to come down to bossing people around and not letting people make their own decisions. I know at my daughter’s college they are not saying you have to get it but they have a lot of if you don’t have the vaccine, you have to wear masks and so forth. Bill de Blasio was offering cheeseburgers. So much is based on force and Americans bristle at the idea of force.
It would be a lot different if we were using churches or groups that people knew but if it is going to be the government, I’m not sure it is going to have the effect they think it is going to have.
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