U.S. finally hits 70 percent vaccination threshold

The United States has finally hit the 70-percent vaccination threshold, Cyrus Shahpar, the White House's COVID-19 data director, announced Monday.

President Biden said earlier this year he was aiming for 70 percent of American adults to have received at least one shot of the available vaccines by July 4, but the goal was not met in time. Now, though, the latest Delta variant-fueled COVID-19 wave seems to have spurred an increase in vaccinations — not only has the U.S. reached a milestone, Shahpar notes, but the country's seven-day vaccination average is also the highest it's been in a month.

While the White House is optimistic about the renewed effort, a new poll from Monmouth University shows there are still some significant gaps in terms of who's receiving the vaccine. Just over 51 percent of people who identify as Republican voters have gotten a shot, while the same can be said for only 63 percent of people under the age of 35.

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The Monmouth University was poll was conducted between July 21 and July 26 and among 804 American adults. The margin of error was 3.5 percentage points. Read the full results here.