Five Out Of Six Americans Over Twelve Have Now Been Vaccinated As Tens Of Millions Get Boosters

     Today is an important day in the fight against the deadliest event in American history. I've long been a proponent of #FightForFive, or a goal of getting five out of six Americans fully vaccinated and boosted against coronavirus. As of today, more than five out of six Americans over the age of 12 have been at least partially vaccinated against coronavirus. Meanwhile, nearly 79 percent of Americans over five and 74 percent of all Americans, which also includes those under five who are not eligible to be vaccinated, have at least gotten the first dose, which means they will be fully vaccinated within a matter of weeks and boosted in the months to come; as of today, the majority of Americans over 50 and one in three of all fully vaccinated Americans have received their booster doses. 86 percent of Americans over 18 and virtually all Americans over 65 have been vaccinated.

     Vaccine hesitancy is melting. More than 60 percent of the total population has at least been partially vaccinated in 45 states; 21 of these have surpassed 70 percent, 12 have surpassed 80 percent, and two have surpassed 90 percent. The majority of the rest of the 45 states have vaccinated well over 65 percent of their residents, putting them on track to surpass the 70 percent mark. There is only one state that may not reach the 70 percent mark, and that is Idaho, whose hospitals are forced to choose who lives and who dies while the GOP majority works to put anti-vaxxers on prominent government boards.

     With these numbers in mind, it is time to increase our ambition to fight the virus. This spring will likely see 90 percent of adults vaccinated against COVID-19; well over 90 percent of the elderly have already been vaccinated, and Americans over 12 are always just a few percentage points behind those over 18. It's time to launch a #90ForNormalcy initiative. Will 90 percent of the total U.S. population, or virtually all who are eligible, get vaccinated? Likely not. However, we need to have an even more ambitious goal to shoot for. The Supreme Court needs to uphold Biden's vaccine mandates, which legal experts, Supreme Court precedent, and even numerous conservative appeals courts overwhelmingly support as constitutional. More than 95 percent of members of the armed forces and government employees have chosen to be vaccinated instead of losing their jobs. A mandate for domestic airline travel would have a similar impact. Plus, it has been proven that grassroots, door-to-door outreach in the most hesitant counties has worked; these are efforts the government needs to foster and support.

     2022 will be the year that makes or breaks America in so many ways; let's #GetOutTheVax, #FightForFive, and work toward #90ForNormalcy!!!