Pelosi to get COVID-19 vaccine ‘in the coming days’ as lawmakers’ vaccination program begins

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Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiHouse has to come home to start a new convention. OVERNIGHT ENERGY: Biden Reportedly Hiring Former EPA Head Gina McCarthy as Domestic ‘Climate Tsar’ | Biden reportedly chose Brenda Mallory to head the White House Environmental Council | Pelosi and Hoyer nod in support of Haaland for Internal Affairs Six largest veteran groups call for VA secretary’s resignation MORE (D-Calif.) Said on Thursday that she expects to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in the coming days as a vaccination plan for members of Congress begins to take shape.

Pelosi said the Capitol doctors office has informed Congressional leadership that members of the House and Senate are eligible for vaccinations, which were distributed to health workers this week.

“With confidence in the vaccine and under the direction of the treating physician, I plan to receive the vaccine in the coming days,” Pelosi said in a statement.

“Even with a vaccine, I will continue to monitor[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines by continuing to wear a mask and take other science-based steps to stop the spread of the virus, ”she added.

Pelosi is second in line of succession for the presidency, making the speaker a priority for vaccination for continuity of government purposes.

The president of the Senate pro tempore, currently Sen. Chuck GrassleyChuck Grassley Senate GOP Warns Biden Against Choosing Sally Yates as Attorney General Top GOP Senators Recognize Biden as President-Elect after Electoral College Voted Biden’s Choice of Homeland Security Secretary Cause Problems MORE (R-Iowa), is third in line of succession. Grassley tested positive for COVID-19 last month, but experienced no symptoms.

Hours earlier, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellBiden plans to get COVID-19 vaccination publicly next week Pence, other Trump officials to get vaccine publicly Sweeping COVID-19, spending deal hits speed bumps MORE (R-Ky.) Also announced that he expects to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in the coming days. And like Pelosi, McConnell reiterated that he will still adhere to mask and social distance guidelines.

“Due to government continuity requirements, I have been informed by the attending physician’s office that I am eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine, which I will accept in the coming days,” McConnell said in a statement.

“Even with a vaccine, I will continue to follow CDC guidelines by wearing a mask, exercising social distance, and washing my hands regularly,” McConnell added. “I would strongly encourage everyone to continue to follow these important guidelines. It’s the only way we’ll beat COVID-19 once and for all. “

Members of Congress will soon also have access to the vaccine.

The Capitol’s physician office released a memo on Thursday informing lawmakers that the recently Food and Drug Administration-approved Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will be made available to Congress under “long-term requirements for continuity of government operations.” The Supreme Court and the executive will also receive a number of COVID-19 vaccine doses.

“The small number of COVID-19 vaccine doses that we will receive reflects a fraction of the first tranche of vaccines as distributed nationwide,” Brian Monahan, Capitol’s attending physician, wrote in the memo.

“My recommendation to you is absolutely unequivocal: there is no reason why you should delay the administration of this vaccine. The benefit far outweighs any minor risk,” Monahan wrote.

Monahan said lawmakers would get the vaccine first, followed by key personnel in the Capitol.

“Once we complete the vaccination of members, we will be pursuing a process over the next few weeks to identify key personnel in the various branches of the Capitol community,” he wrote. “The appointment process will then continue until supplies of the small vaccine run out. A second dose planning process will then begin later.”

Members of Congress are considered essential workers – a group considered a high priority for a vaccine according to the recommendations of the CDC – and are at higher risk of exposure to viruses due to frequent travel across the country and interacting with many people .

At least 42 members of the House and Senate have tested positive for COVID-19 since March, while several others have tested positive for antibodies or suspected cases.

About half of the cases among members of Congress have only been since November as the nation is experiencing the height of the pandemic so far.

Just since Tuesday, five MPs have revealed the diagnosis of COVID-19.

One of those lawmakers who tested positive for the past few days, Rep. Joe WilsonAddison (Joe) Graves Wilson Republican in South Carolina tests positive for coronavirus hours after a speech on the floor of the house Obama said his’ initial instinct ‘during Joe Wilson’s ’09 outburst was to’ hit this guy on the head. ‘Democrats are raising the alarm about new American human rights priorities MORE (RS.C.), voted on the House floor and gave a speech before learning of his diagnosis. Wilson wore a mask in accordance with Pelosi’s requirement and said he does not feel any symptoms.

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