Coronavirus: Trumps were vaccinated in January before leaving White House
- It was not immediately clear why the ex-president kept his inoculation a secret for several weeks and did not mention it in a speech on Sunday
- Trump had earlier declined to get the jab after his doctors cited potential complications related to the antibody treatment he got when he contracted Covid-19
Before leaving the White House on January 20, then President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine earlier in the month, a Trump adviser said Monday.
The former first couple received their second shot while in Florida as private citizens. The adviser did not, however, disclose whether the Trumps received the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
It was not immediately clear why Trump and his wife kept their inoculations a secret for several weeks or why he did not mention it at a much-heralded political speech Sunday.
Trump had earlier declined to get the vaccine after his doctors cited potential complications related to the monoclonal antibody treatment he received when he contracted the virus last September.
01:46
One-shot coronavirus vaccine by Johnson & Johnson is safe and effective, US FDA finds
Doctors generally recommend that people get vaccinated even if they have previously had Covid-19 since some people can get infected more than once.
Conservative Republicans are among the groups most reluctant to take the vaccines and are also supportive of Trump.
The former Republican president has been famously sceptical of other public health measures, particularly mask-wearing.
Trump says China ‘ripped us off for years’, hints at 2024 run for presidency
But the 45th US president reminded a cheering crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, on Sunday that he was the one who gave America the chance to get vaccinated.
“This was us. We did this. And the distribution is moving along, according to our plan,” Trump said. “It’s moving along really well.”
“So everyone get your shot,” he added.
