Half of Americans now fully vaccinated against COVID-19

(CNN) – The US has hit a new milestone Tuesday with 50% of adults becoming fully vaccinated against COVID-19, CDC reports

Over 131 million Americans have been fully vaccinated as of Tuesday morning.

“This is a major milestone in our country’s vaccination efforts,” White House Senior COVID-19 Advisor Andy Slavitt said during a White House briefing, noting only 1% of Americans were vaccinated when President Joe Biden entered office in January.

Earlier this month, Biden said he wanted 160 million US adults fully vaccinated by July 4.

The Pfizer vaccine for COVID-19 was only authorized for younger teens earlier this month and Moderna said Tuesday morning that its COVID-19 vaccine is safe and appears to be effective in adolescents.

The Moderna vaccine is not yet authorized for use in people younger than 18; the company says it plans to submit the results to the US Food and Drug Administration in early June along with a request for authorization to use the vaccine in adolescents.

In the middle of April, the entire country opened up vaccinations to anyone over the age of 16.

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