History was made on Tuesday as Dr. Anthony Fauci, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) director whose updates have helped define Americans’ experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic, received his first dose of Moderna’s vaccine in a ceremonial event at the National Institutes of Health.
“I feel extreme confidence in the safety and the efficacy of this vaccine, and I want to encourage everyone who has the opportunity to get vaccinated so that we can have a veil of protection over this country, that would end this pandemic,” said Fauci of the experience as he received his shot alongside NIH director Francis Collins and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. Watch the process for yourself below:
Fauci isn’t the only well-known face to receive the vaccine of late—actor Ian McKellen and President-elect Joe Biden were also recent recipients—but there’s something about seeing the man who shepherded us through the early days of the pandemic receive the vaccine that made me internally exhale for the first time since March. Of course, vaccines aren’t going to instantly bring the world back to normal, and there’s still a lot of work to be done in ensuring equity in their distribution, but Fauci’s public vaccination inspires hope nonetheless.
The question of whether Fauci should be seen as a celebrity has been on many people’s minds, with NoFilter’s Kate Lindsay writing in July that memes and misattributed Fauci quotes “force me to question everything I see attributed to one of the only trusted voices during the pandemic.”
With that in mind, it’s still possible to feel good about Fauci’s vaccination without elevating him beyond the status of human mortal, and that’s exactly what I plan to do—because these days, I’ll take a dose of serotonin however and wherever it comes. (Yes, I teared up about Fauci “vaccinating Santa.” Yes, I’m 27 and childless. Any questions?)