July 4 Goal on Vaccinations Won't Happen

Vaccination reality has not kept up with President Biden's hopes for giving at least one dose to 70% of adults by July 4, so there will be a new goal. The target to be announced Tuesday will be at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine administered to 70% of those 27 and older, through the holiday weekend, the Washington Post reports. Biden announced his original goal in May, but with the vaccination rate slowing in the past two months, there's no way to reach it at this point. Projections now are that at most, the share by July 4 will be about 68%. And it could be August before Biden's first goal is met. More than 3 million shots per day were being given in mid-April, but that's dropped to about 1.1 million in the past week. When Biden took office, about 5% of adults had had a shot or two; by Tuesday, that share had reached 64%, per the Post.

Biden's COVID-19 response coordinator plans to announce that people age 18 to 26 will be emphasized in vaccination efforts. Their rates and intent are running lower than that of other age groups in the US, studies that came out Monday show, per CNN, despite state efforts to encourage participation with lotteries and giveaways. States mostly on the coasts have the highest vaccination rates, with 20 of them registering at least 68% of adults. That means, of course, that other states and places have much lower vaccination rates. Despite missing his goal, Biden still plans to host an Independence Day party at the White House. About 1,000 military and front-line workers will be honored in the biggest event there of Biden's term to celebrate progress against the coronavirus pandemic. (More coronavirus vaccine stories.)