COVID-19: US President Joe Biden expects Pfizer vaccine to be approved for 12 to 15-year-olds
Mr Biden also laid out plans for the next stage of the vaccine rollout, including vaccinating 70% of American adults by 4 July.
Wednesday 5 May 2021 12:07, UK
US President Joe Biden said the government is gearing up to give the coronavirus vaccine to 12 to 15-year-olds.
Biden announced the next phase in America's vaccine rollout and said that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to approve the Pfizer jab for children as young as 12.
All of the current vaccines are authorised for use in people over 16 in America.
Subscribe to the Daily podcast on , , ,
The president also laid out plans to vaccinate 70% of American adults - a total of 160 million - by 4 July.
The target is well within reach given that 105 million have already had COVID-19 jabs and the US is vaccinating nearly a million adults per day.
However, the vaccination rate is half of what it was just three weeks ago.
Live COVID updates from UK and around world
Mr Biden had previously set the goal of life returning to normal by 4 July.
He said his administration would focus on getting the vaccine to more rural areas of the country, using smaller locations as mass vaccination sites were wound down.
"Now that we have the vaccine supply, we're focused on convincing even more Americans to show up and get the vaccine that is available to them," Mr Biden said during a White House press briefing.
At the start of his presidency, Biden targeted getting 100 million people vaccinated during his first 100 days in office, which he later increased to 200 million people.
"I want American parents to know that if that announcement comes, we are ready to move immediately," Mr Biden said, adding that 20,000 pharmacies across the country would serve as vaccination sites as soon as FDA approval came through.
To meet the president's broader target, the government will work to make the vaccine accessible by having thousands of pharmacies allow walk-in appointments.