US President Joe Biden does not yet know whether the US federal government has the authority to make vaccination against coronavirus mandatory for all country residents, but local authorities can give appropriate orders. The American leader said this on Thursday at the White House during a speech dedicated to the new steps of the American administration in the fight against the pandemic caused by the coronavirus.
“Local authorities can do this; local enterprises can do it. The question remains whether the federal government can oblige the entire country. I don’t know this yet,” he said, noting that he had discussed these issues with representatives of the US Department of Justice.
Final approval of vaccines
Biden also expressed hope that the coronavirus vaccines will receive final approval from the US regulator in early autumn.
To date, the use of three vaccines are allowed in the United States: the American company Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, the American company Moderna and the one-component drug Johnson & Johnson. However, all of them were approved under an accelerated procedure for use in emergency circumstances. Thus, these drugs have yet to receive full approval from the American regulator – the Food and Drug Quality Administration.
“This is still a temporary approval,” Biden said. According to him, usually, the management needs to do “a lot of work” to make a final decision. “I expect that they will conclude in early autumn,” the US president added.
