Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden encourage Americans to get vaccinated in Easter message

The weekend marked this year’s Easter Sunday, and President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden wished Americans a happy Easter. The Bidens also encouraged Americans who have yet to get vaccinated to do so.

The Bidens wished Americans a happy Easter on Sunday and encouraged those who have yet to get vaccinated to receive their shot. In their video message, shared on the official POTUS Twitter account, the Bidens echoed the comments of Pope Francis regarding getting vaccinated for COVID-19. This also comes as health officials ramp up vaccination efforts in order to prevent a fourth surge of infections. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reported a record of four million vaccines administered to Americans in a span of 24 hours on Saturday.

“We share the sentiments of Pope Francis who said that getting vaccinated is a moral obligation, one that can save your life and the lives of others,” said Biden in the video. “By getting vaccinated and encouraging your congregations and your communities to get vaccinated, we not only can beat this virus, we can also haste the day when we can celebrate the holidays together.”

Dr. Biden also noted that there are businesses recovering and families receiving financial help as well as more Americans getting vaccinated against COVID-19.

As of Sunday, the CDC has reported that an overall 165 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have already been administered. 106 million of the overall population are recorded to have received at least one dose of the vaccine, while around 61 million people have been fully vaccinated.

But despite getting fully vaccinated, health officials still highly recommend wearing a face mask when in places where social distancing could not be practiced. The Department of Health and Human Services recently launched a contest on face mask designs called the $500,000 “Mask Innovation Challenge” where participants have until April 21 to come up with the best design for face masks that could get rid of common concerns such as skin irritation while still being effective in preventing transmission of the virus.

Up to 10 winners will be chosen in the first phase of the challenge, splitting the $100,000 prize. In the second phase of the challenge, five winners will be chosen, splitting a $400,000 prize.