[12] The U.S. government began the campaign under the presidency of Donald Trump with Operation Warp Speed, a public–private partnership to expedite the development and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines.

Some American adults have no driver's license,[32] and the United States does not automatically provide each citizen with identity documentation in a centralized system.

[34] However, contrary to rumors that spread on social media, the United States did not have a policy of cancelling visas or imposing fines on tourists who sought vaccination.

Diplomats pointed out that the B1/B2 tourist visa allows people to seek medical treatment while within the United States, even if they do not turn out to be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

[35] As of May 13, 2021, according to the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, the following U.S. states were not requiring foreigners to present proof of residency to receive the vaccine: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wyoming.

[44][41] Among the labs working on a vaccine is the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, which has previously studied other infectious diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, ebola, and MERS.

By March 18, tests had begun with dozens of volunteers in Seattle, sponsored by the U.S. government, and similar safety trials were planned for other potential vaccines.

[47] On August 31, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released their outline for how the COVID-19 vaccine would be administered and distributed across the entire country.

Politics impacted scientific practice, however, when chief of staff Mark Meadows blocked the FDA when it was realized that the timing of the provisions would make it impossible for a vaccine to be authorized before the November election.

[56][57] An EUA is a mechanism under the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2013 that permits products not yet fully approved by the FDA to be used as part of an existing state of emergency.

[81] On July 6, Biden announced plans for more targeted outreach in order to reach under-vaccinated populations, such as shifting from larger mass clinics to having wider availability at community locations and events, and going "neighborhood by neighborhood, and oftentimes, door to door—literally knocking on doors—to get help to the remaining people protected from the virus"[82][83][84] On July 16, the FDA approved a request by Pfizer to give its vaccine a priority review designation, meaning that final approval of the vaccine would be pursued on an expedited timetable.

In an interview with Today, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Anthony Fauci stated that "inevitably, there will be a time when we'll have to give boosts [to the general public].

[115][116] On December 21, President-elect Joe Biden publicly received his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine during a media event at Christiana Hospital in Delaware.

Biden stated that Trump "deserve[d] some credit getting this off the ground with Operation Warp Speed", and told the press "It's going to take time, and in the meantime—I don't want to sound a sour note here—but I hope people listen to all the experts.

[129] On April 13, the CDC and FDA issued a statement recommending a pause in the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine "out of an abundance of caution" after six women aged 18 through 48 developed a rare and severe type of blood clot called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis; on April 23, the recommended pause was lifted.

[134] On May 10, 2021, the FDA granted emergency use authorization for the Pfizer vaccine for use on adolescents aged 12–15, making the United States the second country in the world, after Canada, to do so.

By June 2021, the pace of vaccination had begun to decrease, amid increasing spread of the highly-infectious Delta variant across the country.

[137] On June 3, the White House announced additional private-sector partnerships in order to expand targeted outreach and vaccine availability, including an initiative to promote and offer vaccines through Black-owned barber shops throughout June, and a partnership with brewery Anheuser-Busch—who pledged in a promotional campaign to offer a "free beer" to all adults over 21 if the country met Biden's 70% goal.

[137][138] The United States passed 600,000 Covid deaths on Tuesday, June 15, more than 200 times higher than the number of lives lost during the attacks of September 11, 2001.

However, cases had also begun to increase in parts of the country with below-average vaccination rates, and hesitancy towards the vaccine had become a partisan issue: a poll by The Washington Post and ABC News found that 86% of self-identified Democrats surveyed had received at least one dose, as opposed to 45% of self-identified Republicans, the 18 states that did reach 70% of first doses by July 4 were all won by Biden during the 2020 election,[141][140] and a July 8 report by KFF found that the average vaccination rate in counties that voted for Biden was growing in comparison to those that voted for Trump.

[142] Anti-vaccination rhetoric increased among conservatives, including Republican politicians and right-wing media outlets (such as Fox News and Newsmax) promoting misinformation and conspiracy theories (such as falsely claiming that the Biden administration would impose mandatory door-to-door vaccination—an exaggeration of Biden's recently announced plans for targeted outreach),[82][143][144][145] Republican lawmakers attempting to inhibit vaccine outreach,[145] and state laws to prohibit "discrimination" against the unvaccinated (which effectively ban vaccine mandates).

[149][150] The next day, President Biden accused social networking service Facebook of "killing people" by enabling the spread of vaccine misinformation.

[152][154] A number of conservative commentators also abruptly made statements in support of vaccination, including Fox News hosts Steve Doocy and Sean Hannity during broadcasts of Fox & Friends and Hannity respectively, Newsmax CEO and Trump confidant Christopher Ruddy (who praised Biden in an op-ed for "making a huge dent" in the pandemic by embracing and prioritizing the rollout of the "effective vaccine" inherited from the Trump presidency),[155] and conservative commentator Ben Shapiro.

[158][159] On July 29, President Biden similarly announced that unvaccinated federal employees and on-site contractors will be subject to mandatory social distancing, masks, weekly or bi-weekly COVID-19 testing, and limitations on work travel.

[165] Several major cities announced or approved plans to restrict access to non-essential indoor locations such as cinemas, restaurants, and other entertainment venues, to those who are vaccinated.

On August 9, 2021, all servicemembers received a memo explaining that, under a plan endorsed by President Biden and by military leadership, COVID-19 vaccination would become mandatory within about a month.

As of April 22, 2021, considering active military personnel who had received at least one dose, the U.S. Navy had the highest percentage at 51%, the Marines at 36%, the Air Force/Space Force at 34%, and the Army at 27%.

[185] The U.S. does not issue a federally mandated COVID-19 certificate nor a digital proof that would allow venues to check the vaccine status of participants consistently.

The lack of a federal system for checking COVID-19 status has put the United States in a disadvantage compared to nations in Europe and Asia.

[187] It considers demographics including age, race, political party, education, and insurance status when examining vaccine hesitancy.