Brady Collins
There is no evidence that Joe Biden ever said there was no vaccine. However, during his 2020 presidential campaign, Biden stated that he wouldn't make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for Americans. After taking office, Biden introduced COVID-19 vaccine mandates, which some critics claimed contradicted his earlier promise. In February 2021, Biden also stated that there was no vaccine when we came into office, which fact-checkers deemed a verbal stumble as the first vaccine shot had been administered in December 2020.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date | 20th July 2021 |
| Claim | Joe Biden announced that Americans not vaccinated against COVID-19 before 2022 will be put in "quarantine camps" |
| Fact | There is no record of Biden making such an announcement. |
| Source | Check Your Fact |
| Additional Information | The Biden administration has been actively working to get more Americans vaccinated against COVID-19. |
| Date | 13th September 2021 |
| Claim | Biden's vaccine mandates break his 2020 campaign promise that he wouldn't make the shots mandatory |
| Fact | Biden did state that he wouldn't force Americans to get vaccinated, but he has since announced vaccine mandates for federal workers and companies with more than 100 employees. |
| Source | The Washington Times |
| Additional Information | White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stated that the COVID-19 landscape had changed since Biden made those promises, and they didn't anticipate the opposition to the vaccine. |
| Date | 29th April 2021 |
| Claim | Biden's team brought a fresh urgency to lean on scientific experts who had been ignored in the previous year |
| Fact | Biden's administration disputed that the Trump administration left them with a plan for vaccine distribution. |
| Source | CNN |
| Additional Information | The Trump team disputed this, stating they handed the Biden administration a playbook with 65 plans. |
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What You'll Learn
Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine mandates
There is no evidence that Joe Biden said there was no COVID-19 vaccine. In fact, Biden's administration has actively worked to get more Americans vaccinated against COVID-19. However, an image shared on Facebook in 2021 falsely claimed that Biden announced that Americans not vaccinated against COVID-19 before 2022 would be put in "quarantine camps". This claim appears to have stemmed from a satirical article.
Despite the initial promises, the Biden administration implemented a series of new COVID-19 vaccine mandates in 2021. These mandates included a requirement for federal workers to be vaccinated, as well as a mandate for companies with more than 100 employees to ensure their workers are vaccinated or tested weekly. Non-compliant companies faced fines of $14,000 per violation. In addition, Biden announced vaccination requirements for contractors at schools on military bases, staffs of Head Start programs, and other federal education programs. He also mandated that all healthcare providers accepting Medicare and Medicaid be vaccinated.
The vaccine mandates were met with opposition and sparked numerous lawsuits from federal employees, unions, and states, claiming that the mandates violated constitutional rights and federal labor laws. In 2022, a federal appeals court blocked the enforcement of the order, and Biden repealed the mandate in May 2023. Following the repeal, the Office of Personnel Management directed federal agencies to erase any records related to employees' COVID-19 vaccination status, prior mandate noncompliance, or exemption requests.
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Biden's promise of no federal vaccine mandate
During his 2020 campaign, Joe Biden promised that he wouldn't make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory. At a news conference in Wilmington, Delaware, he stated:
> I don’t think it should be mandatory. I wouldn’t demand it to be mandatory. Just like I don’t think masks have to be made mandatory nationwide.
However, in September 2021, Biden announced a series of new COVID-19 vaccine mandates. These mandates required federal workers, healthcare providers accepting Medicare and Medicaid, and companies with more than 100 employees to get vaccinated or face fines. Employees who refused to get vaccinated were required to undergo weekly testing.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki acknowledged that these mandates contradicted the president's previous promises, but she explained that the COVID-19 landscape had changed since those promises were made. She stated that the administration didn't anticipate the level of opposition to the vaccine, especially since it was approved under a Republican president.
Biden's mandates were met with criticism from some who felt that he had gone back on his word. The GOP, for example, tweeted: "Biden promised no mandate. He lied."
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Biden's claim of no vaccine stockpile
On February 16, 2021, US President Joe Biden stated that there was no COVID-19 vaccine when he took office. At a CNN town hall event in Milwaukee, Biden said, "It's one thing to have the vaccine, which we didn't have when we came into office." This statement sparked controversy, with some critics accusing Biden of denying the existence of a vaccine under the Trump administration. However, Biden had acknowledged minutes earlier that 50 million doses were available when he assumed office, indicating that he may have misspoke or lacked clarity in his phrasing.
In context, Biden's comment appears to refer to the challenges his administration faced in vaccine distribution rather than the vaccine's existence. There were reports of states not receiving sufficient doses and facing logistical issues. Additionally, Biden's transition team had called for the release of second doses from the federal reserve, indicating an awareness of supply concerns.
The White House clarified Biden's statement, emphasizing that while vaccines existed, there was no stockpile ready for distribution when he took office. This assertion holds some truth, as the Washington Post reported that there was no federal reserve of second doses available shortly before Biden's inauguration. The Trump administration had released the stockpile contents to states, confirming a consistent pace of production.
Vice President Kamala Harris also stated that the Biden administration was "starting from scratch" regarding vaccine rollout, highlighting the lack of a national strategy or plan for vaccinations. She emphasized that the previous administration left it to states and local leaders to manage, resulting in a fragmented approach.
While Biden's phrasing may have been misleading, it is important to consider the broader context of his remarks. The Biden administration faced challenges in vaccine distribution, including supply issues and the need to increase the number of vaccinators. The claim of "no vaccine stockpile" reflects a critique of the previous administration's handling of vaccine distribution rather than a denial of the vaccine's existence.
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Biden's promise to end private detention centres
There is no evidence that Joe Biden said there was "no vaccine". In fact, the Biden administration has been actively working to get more Americans vaccinated against COVID-19. However, there were claims on social media that Biden announced Americans not vaccinated before 2022 would be put in "quarantine camps". This claim has been found to be false and stemming from a satirical article.
Now, onto Biden's promise to end private detention centres. As a presidential candidate in 2020, Joe Biden pledged to end for-profit immigration detention, stating that "no business should profit from the suffering of desperate people fleeing violence". However, Biden's administration has faced criticism for not delivering on this promise. According to a report by Detention Watch Network and Project South, the Biden administration has failed to end the use of private prisons in federal incarceration and immigration detention. The report highlights a pattern of detention expansion and inconsistent implementation of the executive order to phase out the use of private prisons.
In March 2021, following a Biden executive order to phase out private prisons for federal detainees, a remote prison in central Pennsylvania run by GEO Group was shut down. However, just six months later, the same complex reopened as a 1,900-bed immigration detention center. This move was criticized as hypocritical, given Biden's promise to end the use of private detention centers.
Under the Biden administration, there has been a boom in private prison revenues from ICE contracts, with an increase in the percentage of detainees being held in private facilities. More than 90% of the roughly 31,000 people held by ICE in July were in private facilities, up from 80% at the end of the Trump administration. This increase in detention has been attributed to the high number of illegal crossings at the US-Mexico border, putting pressure on the Biden administration to maintain detention space.
While Biden has made efforts to reform immigration detention, the implementation of his promises has been inconsistent and challenging. The administration has defended its actions by stating that the COVID-19 landscape has changed since the president made his promises, and they did not anticipate the level of opposition to the vaccine.
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Biden's vaccine distribution plans
There is no evidence that Joe Biden claimed there was no vaccine. In fact, the Biden administration has been actively working to get more Americans vaccinated against COVID-19. However, there were claims that Biden announced that unvaccinated Americans would be detained in "quarantine camps". This claim was found to be false, stemming from a satirical article.
Now, regarding Biden's vaccine distribution plans, during his 2020 campaign, Biden stated that he would not force Americans to get vaccinated, asserting that it should not be mandatory. However, in 2021, Biden announced a series of new COVID-19 vaccine mandates, requiring federal workers to get vaccinated and imposing vaccination requirements for companies with more than 100 employees. Non-compliant companies faced fines.
As of 2025, the CDC continues to recommend COVID-19 vaccines, with updated formulas targeting circulating strains. The FDA's advisory committee has discussed and recommended a monovalent JN.1-lineage vaccine composition for the 2025-2026 formula. The CDC emphasizes the importance of vaccination for individuals aged 65 and older, those at high risk, and those who have never received a COVID-19 vaccine.
It is worth noting that a task force has been formed to review the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, led by Retsef Levi, a vaccine skeptic. This has raised concerns among experts about potential cherry-picking and statistical manipulation in the review process. The task force's mandate includes examining immunization injury reports and other concerns related to the vaccines.
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Frequently asked questions
No, Joe Biden did not say there was no vaccine. However, he did say that there was no plan to get shots into arms when he came into office.
Yes, during his 2020 campaign, Joe Biden said that he wouldn't make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory. However, he has since announced vaccine mandates for federal workers and companies with more than 100 employees.
Yes, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stated that there would be "no federal vaccinations database and no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential."
No, there is no record of Biden making such an announcement. This claim appears to stem from a satirical article.
