President Joe Biden’s White House has administered COVID-19 vaccines to hundreds of staffers and has put strict testing and safety rules in place, Axios reported Tuesday.
The administration sent a recent email to staffers inviting them to receive the vaccine and explaining new safety protocols. Staffers and everyone on White House grounds are required to be tested for COVID-19 daily and wear an N95 mask at all times, according to Axios.
“As we announced last month, approximately three dozen incoming members of the senior staff, national security team and incoming cabinet nominees received their first dose in early January,” White House spokesperson Kevin Munoz told Axios. (RELATED: Amazon Offers To Help Biden Administration With Vaccine Effort After Sitting On The Sidelines For A Month)
NEWARK, DE – DECEMBER 21: President-elect Joe Biden (L) receives a COVID-19 Vaccination from nurse practitioner Tabe Masa at ChristianaCare Christiana Hospital on December 21, 2020 in Newark, Delaware. The rollout of the Moderna vaccine, the second approved for use in the United States, began shipping to sites around the country today. (Photo by Joshua Roberts/Getty Images)
“The White House medical team has vaccinated several hundred additional staffers from the Executive Office of the President who are working on site every day…to ensure a COVID-safe working environment around the president and key leaders who have national security and continuity of government responsibilities,” Munoz added.
Biden signed an executive order on his first day in office requiring masks to be worn at all times on federal property. Later that evening, Biden appeared at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., and spoke without wearing a mask. When asked about the apparent contradiction, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Biden had been “celebrating.”
“Why weren’t president Biden and all members of the Biden family masked at all times on federal lands last night if he signed an executive order that mandates masks on federal lands at all times?” Fox News White House Correspondent Peter Doocy asked at a press conference Jan. 21.
“At the inaugural —” Psaki began.
“I think, Steve, he was celebrating an evening of a historic day in our country and certainly he signed the mask mandate because it’s a way to send a message to the American public about the importance of wearing masks. How it can save tens of thousands of lives,” Psaki replied.