During an interview with CBS’ “The Takeout” podcast recorded on Wednesday and released on Thursday, White House Chief Medical Adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci defended his previous statements that there won’t be central vaccine mandates, stating, “I still say that we’re not going to see vaccine mandates centrally. The president is not going to mandate that people in this country get vaccinated. I said that wouldn’t happen, and I’ll say it now, and it’s still not going to happen.”
Fauci stated, [relevant remarks begin around 37:00] “I’ve always said, and I still say that we’re not going to see vaccine mandates centrally. The president is not going to mandate that people in this country get vaccinated. I said that wouldn’t happen, and I’ll say it now, and it’s still not going to happen. But what you will see is local mandates. The president certainly has the right and the authority to mandate vaccines for federal workers, which he’s done, at the executive branch. He also has the authority to mandate for those who are in the healthcare system utilizing Medicare and Medicaid. What I’m saying right now is that now that we know these vaccines work, and we’re still dealing with a crisis, I am in favor, under certain circumstances, to make mandates for vaccines.”
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