On Friday, the country administered its 100 millionth Covid-19 vaccine dose since President Joe Biden took office, a sign of increased supply from vaccine manufacturers and increased efficiency from state and local health departments.
The rapid pace has been helped by the arrival of a third vaccine, the one-shot vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, which drastically upped the country’s supply in March, and by states moving to increase the number of people eligible for the vaccination.
The daily injection numbers show how the rate of vaccinations has accelerated since the New Year. In the 37 days from the county’s first vaccine administrations to Biden’s inauguration, 16.5 million doses were administered, according to data collected by NBC News and from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Over the following 37 days, the country administered 50 million doses — more than three times as many shots in the same span. The next 50 million shots were quicker, coming in 22 days.
In January, after setting his first milestone of 100 million total vaccinations in his first 100 days, Biden put targets on 1.5 million shots per day and 150 million total vaccinations.
The country is well ahead of the first metric, as 2.5 million shots are currently being administered per day, on average. The country is ahead of pace for the second target, and the pace could increase even further, as the Biden administration has set up a number of mass-vaccination sites around the country and expanded the pool of individuals eligible to administer the vaccine to include dentists, veterinarians and other health care professionals.
NBC News is publishing a vaccination guide: Plan Your Vaccine.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
