Explainer: When can I receive the COVID-19 vaccine?

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden outlined his plans for addressing the next stage of the coronavirus pandemic. The president pledged to make 600 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccines available by the end of July and said that teachers should be moved “up the hierarchy” of the vaccine queue. 

Here’s what you should know about vaccine prioritization and when you can expect to receive the vaccine. 

How are the vaccines being rationed?

There are several factors that result in the vaccines being rationed and given to certain groups of people before others. The primary factor is the extraordinary demand for the vaccines. There are approximately 210 million adults in the U.S., and to reach herd immunity about 80-90% will need to be vaccinated. That means 168 to 189 million U.S. adults need to receive the vaccine. Some of the vaccines also require two doses, which puts a further constraint on the supply. 

1. The first coronavirus vaccine was administered to U.S. health-care workers a mere two months ago, on December 14, 2020. To date, about 16 million people have been fully vaccinated. At the rate of 1.5 million doses a day, vaccinating 80-90% of the adult population won’t occur until late July or early August.

This Week at the ERLC

• Russell Moore was quoted in Baptist Press discussing President Biden's actions to raise the refugee limits and re-establish the White House Office of Faith-Based Partnerships. He also wrote about Ravi Zacharias in a two-part article. You can read part one here and part two here.
   
• Jason Thacker talked to BiblicalRecorder about the controversial app Parler and the nature of content moderation.
   
• The ERLC announced that the 2021 ERLC Academy will take place in Nashville on May 17-18. Learn more and register here.

What You Need to Read

Josh Wester with Explainer: Should the government jail pastors for violating COVID-19 restrictions?

The government clearly has a responsibility—and God-given authority—to protect public health and safety in light of the ongoing threats of COVID-19. But nearly a year into the pandemic, jailing pastors for holding worship services is an unacceptable breach of the church–state relationship and an alarming overreach of government authority.

Since the beginning of the pandemic in the United States, the ERLC has called for church leaders and government officials to view one another as partners and allies in the fight to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Further, we have urged governments to issue guidance, rather than mandates, to churches and houses of worship. This applies to Canada, as well.

Catherine Parks with South Carolina passes the “heartbeat bill”

On Thursday, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster signed into law a bill that prohibits abortion once a fetal heartbeat has been detected. The passing of Senate Bill 1, also known as the “heartbeat bill,” by the South Carolina legislature makes the state the twelfth to pass a similar bill in recent years. The House passed the bill Thursday morning by a vote of 79-35, with two Democrats voting for it and two Republicans voting against. The Senate had previously approved the bill on Jan. 28.

Ben Mandrell with How to lead during difficult times

As the global pandemic rages on, many church leaders are feeling increasingly uncertain about the new normal in front of us. It started ankle deep, then waist, and has continued to rise. Anxiety grows as momentum plateaus. Breathe deep and believe that the doctrine of God’s sovereignty is good for the soul. He still has the whole world in his hands. And when this moment passes, Jesus will reward those who kept their eyes on him–no matter how deep the water. He may let us sink a little, but he will not let us drown.

News From Capitol Hill

Earlier this week, the French parliament considered a controversial religious law called, “the Law to Uphold Republican Principles.” The intent of this bill is to “combat the threat of Islamist radicals,” who French President Emmanuel Macron has called “the enemy of the Republic.”

French evangelicals have been critical of the bill. The National Council of Evangelicals in France (CNEF) has been working to highlight the problems the bill would create. Our public policy team wrote an explainer to do the same.

“There is no question that France faces a difficult situation with the presence and spread of radical Islam and that efforts to curtail extremism are warranted and needed. Still, the “separatism” bill would create new restrictions on the rights to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion and would strengthen the French conception of separation of church and state in significant and harmful ways. 

Christians should oppose this clear example of government overreach that would trample upon the consciences of millions of French citizens and pray this bill does not pass as introduced. The ERLC will continue to monitor this bill and work with our partners in France and in Europe on these important issues.”

Back in the U.S., our team in Washington, D.C. is working on another problematic bill for human dignity and religious liberty, the Equality Act. The ERLC opposes the Equality Act because of the devastating discrimination it would bring upon faith-based nonprofits, healthcare providers, and women and girls. The ERLC is working alongside a broad coalition of partners to highlight grave concerns in the bill. This bill is scheduled for a vote next week in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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