Fauci tells Biden and Harris to get Covid vaccine as soon as possible

Dr Fauci says Americans without underlying conditions may receive the vaccine as soon as the end of March

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have been advised not to wait to get the coronavirus vaccine by one of the nation's top doctors responding to the virus.  

Dr Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Good Morning America that he believes the incoming president and vice president should both receive vaccinations as soon as possible, citing security risks.  

"For security reasons, I really feel strongly that we should get them vaccinated as soon as we possibly can," he said.

Mr Fauci said he would prefer to see Mr Biden "fully protected" by the time his term begins in January.  

As for the current administration, Dr Fauci said Donald Trump should still have antibodies from his bout with the virus protecting him, and advised Mike Pence to receive the shot quickly as well. 

"You still want to protect people who are very important to our country right now," Dr Fauci said.  

The first shipments of the coronavirus vaccines rolled out late last week as onlookers cheered the trucks moving the drugs throughout the country.  

On Monday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo hosted a live stream during which an ICU nurse from Queens named Sandra Lindsay became the first American to receive the coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials. Videos of healthcare workers unloading and receiving the vaccine began to spread on local news stations across the country.  

Healthcare workers and nursing home residents will be the first to receive the vaccine, followed by essential workers, the elderly, those with underlying medical conditions and the general population.  

Dr Fauci said during an appearance on MSNBC that people with no underlying conditions should begin receiving the vaccine in late March or early April, assuming the rollout happens as planned.  

The vaccine has arrived as the coronavirus worsens across virtually the entire US.  

Nearly 80 million people have contracted Covid-19 worldwide, with 16.5 million cases and nearly 300,500 fatalities in the US alone, according to Johns Hopkins University data.  

Health experts pleaded with Americans to stay home rather than attend Thanksgiving gatherings, and the calls to forgo Christmas gatherings have already begun.  

Dr Fauci said he would be one of those skipping a family outing this year.  

"For the first time in more than 30 years, I'm not spending the Christmas holidays with my daughters," he told CNN.