Vice President Pence To Get COVID-19 Vaccine Publicly On Friday

Alana Wise

December 16, 2020 / 3:29 pm

caption: Vice President Pence attends a rally in support of Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., and Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., on Dec. 04, 2020.

Vice President Mike Pence will publicly receive a COVID-19 vaccine on Friday, the White House has announced.

Updated at 7:11 p.m. ET

Surgeon General Jerome Adams and second lady Karen Pence will also receive the vaccine.

President-elect Joe Biden is expected to receive the vaccine "as soon as next week," a transition official confirms to NPR. Biden has also said he would get the vaccine publicly.

Pence, who chairs the White House's coronavirus task force, and other officials are working to instill trust in the vaccination process. By taking it in public, he hopes to "promote the safety and efficacy of the vaccine and build confidence among the American people," the White House says.

Pence will be the highest ranking person yet to publicly receive a COVID-19 vaccine as distribution begins.

President Trump has credited his administration with fast-tracking vaccine development and has hailed it as among his greatest presidential accomplishments.