The nation's top infectious disease expert says the U.S. should expect more vaccine mandates now that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 shot.
In an interview on MSNBC's Morning Joe on Tuesday, Dr Anthony Fauci said he thinks approval will help push more Americans to get the Covid vaccine because it might reduce their fears about the safety of the shot.
But he added that businesses and schools may feel more comfortable requiring workers or students to get a jab that has full authorization.
'You're gonna see a lot more [vaccine] mandates because there will be institutions and organizations which previously were reluctant to require vaccinations, which will now feel much more empowered to do that,' Fauci said.
'That could be organizations, businesses, colleges, universities. We're even seeing it with the military already.'
However, mandates are a contentious topic with many states outright banning laws that would require workers to be vaccinated.
Dr Anthony Fauci said on Tuesday (pictured) that the U.S. should expect to see more vaccine mandates now that Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine receive full approval from the FDA
Fauci explained that organizations were likely hesitant to require vaccines only approved for emergency use. Pictured: A student receives a first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at the California State University Long Beach campus, August 11
Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine was the first to receive emergency use authorization from federal regulators in December 2020 and will now be first to be licensed.
Approval for use on an emergency basis means it was considered somewhat experimental despite data showing it is safe and effective.
Emergency use authorization (EUA) requires less clinical trial data, with the FDA only requiring two months of follow-up before approving the shot for those 16 and older last year compared to six months for full approval.
Experts believe the full approval will help boost vaccination numbers even further.
Fauci referenced a recent report from the Kaiser Family Foundation that found three in ten unvaccinated adults said they would be more likely to get
