January 26, 2021:President Joe Biden said on Monday that the U.S. could reach 1.5 million Covid-19 vaccinations per day, more than his previous target of 1 million per day, which was nearly met by the Trump administration.

Biden has pledged to administer 100 million doses of coronavirus vaccine in his first 100 days in office, meaning 1 million doses per day.

 “I think with the grace of God and the goodwill of the neighbor and the crick not rising, as the old saying goes, I think we may be able to get that to 1.5 million a day, rather than 1 million a day, but we have to meet that goal of a million a day,” Biden said.

Some public health specialists have criticized Biden’s pledge to administer 100 million doses of vaccine in his first 100 days in office as too modest. When Biden assumed the presidency last week, the U.S. was already well on its way to achieving the necessary pace of 1 million shots per day. As of Sunday, the U.S. topped a seven-day average of 1.1 million vaccinations per day, according to data in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

With the introduction of Johnson’s & Johnson’s one dose vaccination from next month, the Biden administration says that 1 million doses per day are not the goal but the floor. JNJ’s vaccinations could substantially start the mass effort, whereas the two manufactured vaccines, Moderna and Pfizer, require two doses for maximum protection.

Biden said Monday that the administration is working to increase the number of people who can administer the doses, uplift its protection, and set more facilities to schedule appointments and receive their immunizations.

“Time is of the essence,” Biden said. “We’re trying to get out a minimum of 100 million vaccinations in 100 days, and move in the direction where we are well beyond that in the next 100 days, so we can get to the point where we reach herd immunity in a country of over 300 million people.”

On Monday, a report said the U.S. would get to the point when anyone who wants to get the vaccines will be able to get it. Biden said this spring.

But even as Biden voiced a more aggressive target for the vaccination campaign, he added Monday that the U.S. is “going to see somewhere between a total of 600,000 to 660,000 deaths before we begin to turn the corner in a major way.”