The President and First Lady Get Vaccinated

The President and First Lady Get Vaccinated
Posted by Jesse Lee on December 21, 2009 at 06:16 PM EST

A White House nurse prepares to administer the H1N1 vaccine to President Barack Obama at the White House December 20, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)


In an interview today with American Urban Radio Networks in the Oval Office, the President made clear that the time for adults to get their H1N1 shots is now and that it is safe. From ABC News' write-up of the interview:

"People need to understand that this vaccine is safe," Obama said. "Michelle and I just got the shots ourselves... we wanted to make sure nationwide that children were getting it before adults did. And now there's enough vaccine so that adults should get it as well."

The President spoke about how his daughters received the vaccine in October, when it was first being made available to school-age children. He said that it’s important for parents to vaccinate their children.

"That's the most important population because this flu, unlike seasonal flu, disproportionately affects children and young people -- healthy children and young people as well as people with underlying conditions like asthma or neurological diseases. So it is so important and, frankly, the African American vaccination rate has been lower, substantially lower so far than the general population," he said. "I think people just need to understand: If I had the two people that are most important in my life, my two daughters, get it right away -- and they've been just fine with it and in fact haven't gotten sick this entire flu season -- then you need to know that you need to make sure your children get it as well."

As always, learn more about H1N1 and your family at Flu.gov.