During his Thursday address to the American public, Biden announced that Friday, which marks "58 days into our administration, we will have met my goal of administering 100 million shots to our fellow Americans."
"That’s weeks ahead of schedule, and even with the setbacks we faced during the winter storms. And it’s another big step on the path to checking the — putting checks in pockets and shots in people’s arms," he added.
Biden boasted that experts told him his initial plan - to administer 100 million COVID-19 vaccines to Americans in the first 100 days of his presidency - was "definitely aggressive" and would require a "seamless" distribution plan.
"Eight weeks ago, only 8 percent of seniors, those most vulnerable to COVID-19, had received a vaccination," Biden said.
"Today, 65 percent of people aged 65 or older have received at least one shot, and 36 percent are fully vaccinated. And that’s key — because this is a population that represents 80 percent of the well over 500,000 COVID-19 deaths that have occurred in America.
Moving forward, Americans can expect vaccine progress updates "every time we hit the 50 million mark," the US president said.
As folks in the US continue to get vaccinated, Washington is finalizing deals to export a total of four million AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines to Canada and Mexico, despite concerns about the vaccine's safety. Mexico is slated to receive 2.5 million doses of the controversial vaccine, while Canada is estimated to receive 1.5 million doses, according to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.
The World Health Organization acknowledged on Wednesday that "some countries in the European Union have temporarily suspended use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine as a precautionary measure based on reports of rare blood coagulation disorders."
