On Dec. 8, presidential nominee Joe Biden pledged to administer 100 million COVID-19 vaccinations in his first 100 days of presidency. Biden’s 100th day in office will be April 30. On his 58th day in office, March 19, Biden met his goal of vaccinating 100 million Americans. On March 25, Biden announced a new goal by his 100th day in office, to administer a total of 200 million COVID-19 doses. 

According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, as of April 6, over 192 million COVID-19 vaccines have been administered. Of the 192 million Americans who have been vaccinated, 122.2 million Americans have had their first dose and 75 million Americans are fully vaccinated. Of the number of those fully vaccinated, 62.5 percent are 65 or older and 29.1 percent are 18 or older. 

In addition, of the 168 million administered COVID-19 vaccinations, 86 million were Pfizer-BioNTech, 77 million were Moderna and four million were Johnson & Johnson. 

On Mar. 25, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced vaccine age eligibility would be lowered to 16 starting April 5. As of April 7, Florida has administered vaccines to a total of 11.5 million Floridians. Broward County has administered about 1 million vaccinations and Miami-Dade county has administered about 1.4 million vaccinations. 

As the rate of vaccination increases, many people have expressed questions regarding “vaccine passports” or other avenues of showing proof of vaccination, besides the CDC issued card. On April 2, DeSantis signed an executive order banning all business and local governments from requiring customers to show proof they have been vaccinated against COVID-19. 

In his order, DeSantis highlights that vaccination records are considered private health information and that COVID-19 vaccinations are optional. DeSantis continued the order by establishing the reduction of  “individual freedom” that would “create two classes of citizens.”

While this executive order is temporary, DeSantis has established that he will work with the Florida Legislature in the near future to permanently restrict all types of “vaccine passports.”

With the recent uptick in vaccinations, many across the nation are hopeful for a return to pre-pandemic life in the near future.