Illinois Representative Rodney Davis, the top Republican on the House Admissions Committee, sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday calling for a comprehensive vaccination program, especially for workers. essentials of the hill.
He called for the House’s “high-risk, front-line essential workers” to receive the vaccine.
“Providing vaccines against immunity to high-risk, front-line essential workers in the House is not only fundamental to the continuity of the institution’s operations, but it is its duty to ensure the health and safety of staff and of the members, “he wrote in the letter, obtained by CNN. “In addition, the implementation of a clear plan will indicate to both the public and private sectors that the House has confidence in the vaccine. I have full confidence in our ability to develop a successful program in late January based on the model of Existing Influenza Vaccination in the House – A Proven and Trusted Program That Many House Members and Staff Are Familiar with and Benefited From “
The letter comes a week after CNN asked House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer in a call to reporters when members of Congress would be vaccinated. He said there were ongoing discussions at the time, but could not provide details.
CNN has contacted the rapporteur’s office for additional information about a possible vaccination program. Pelosi has not yet commented on when members would receive a vaccine, but stressed in a statement when the distribution was approved that Americans should continue to wear masks and social distances.
“Until the vaccine is widely available, it is essential that we continue to adopt the tests, monitoring, treatment, use of masks, and social distancing that are essential to prevent thousands of Americans from dying every day from the pandemic.” , he said.
Separately, a Capitol official told CNN that Congress has not been informed of how many doses of the vaccine will be available.
On the Senate side, House Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a speech to the floor that he will wait to get the vaccine until it is available to lawmakers and not “skip the line.”
“But let’s not be fooled: we should all lead by example, commit to taking the vaccine and tell our components to take it too,” he added.
CNN’s Sunlen Serfaty contributed to this report.