Texas Gov. Greg Abbott received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on Tuesday.
“Didn’t feel a thing,” Abbott said after getting the injection. “It’s that easy.”
The governor said he made his choice to take the vaccine after having discussions with officials from the CDC and Health and Human Services.
“They said it’s important for governors to step up and be examples in their community to show that these vaccines are very easy to get, very safe to get,” Abbott said.
Abbott said he’s aware of Texans’ hesitancy to take the vaccine, so he livestreamed the vaccination to encourage others to get vaccinated as soon as they are able to.
The governor’s vaccination comes after thousands of doses have been delivered at hospitals throughout the state of Texas for the past two weeks.
So far, the FDA has cleared two vaccines — Pfizer’s and Moderna’s.
Both have been delivered to hospitals throughout the country to be administered to frontline health care workers and priority populations. This week, San Antonio is set to receive thousands of doses of both vaccines.
While the vaccine has been welcomed news, Dr. John Hellerstedt said people can’t let down their guard, especially as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are on the rise throughout the state. The general public will not be able to get vaccinated until the spring or early summer, experts have said.
“In the meantime, we need to remember what it is that got us here. What got us here was the success of doing the kind of infection prevention and control measures that have worked so far,” Hellerstedt said. “The physical social distancing, wearing masks in public, never forget that is what made us successful.”