House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (California) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Received the first doses of the congressional Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine from Congress on Friday.
Why it’s important: The two leaders – Pelosi at 80 and McConnell at 78 – are at risk for serious coronavirus infections.
- They are among the highest-ranking government officials who have received the vaccine, joining Vice President Mike Pence, who received the vaccine publicly on Friday before.
- Members of Congress, many of them elderly and in high-risk categories, are among the first people in the U.S. eligible to begin receiving the vaccine.
The big picture: McConnell and Pelosi are involved in negotiations on the next coronavirus relief package, which is expected to be worth about $ 900 billion and could be finalized by the end of the day.