Joe Biden receives COVID booster dose days after CDC recommendation

US President Joe Biden received a booster shot of the COVID vaccine at the White House on Monday, just days after its recommendation by the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention for certain age groups.

The President encouraged everyone who is eligible for the vaccine booster to take the shot.

“If you got the Pfizer vaccine in January, February, or March — and you are over 65, have a medical condition, or work in a frontline job — you can go get your booster,” Biden said in a tweet.

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“They will be available in 80,000 locations, including at over 40,000 pharmacies nationwide,” the tweet added.

Earlier, Biden had announced that he will be getting the booster shot.

 “I’ll be getting my COVID-19 booster shot — and I encourage everyone who’s eligible to get theirs as well,” Biden had said.

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Biden had received his second dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine on-camera in January. According to the CDC guidelines on the booster doses, people above 65 should get a booster shot six months after their second dose. The President is 78.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had endorsed the third dose of Pfizer vaccine on Friday for people 65 years and older and residents in long-term care settings, as well as people 50 to 64 years old who have an underlying medical condition.

More than 2 million people have already received a booster dose of the vaccine in the United States even though it was only recommended for those with immune system disorders until Friday. Many experts say that this indicates that many Americans were not willing to wait for the CDC and FDA’s green light to receive an additional dose.

Biden said that on Wednesday he will travel to Chicago to highlight the importance of businesses instituting vaccine requirements for their employees, NBC News reported.