Philadelphia can meet Biden's goal for all adults to be eligible for the vaccine by May

Philadelphia officials estimates that the city can vaccinate a majority of residents by July, a goal President Joe Biden set.

Biden announced on March 11 that he would direct states to allow all adults to sign up for a vaccine appointment by May 1, with the goal of returning to small gatherings in July. Philadelphia Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said Biden's plan would speed up the city's timeline for eligibility by about a month. Farley predicted that close to 800,000 of the city's nearly 1.2 million adults could be vaccinated by July 4, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Philadelphia faces a different distribution timeline from the rest of the state, in large part because the city receives its vaccine supply directly from the federal government, rather than the state of Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania will have a sufficient COVID-19 vaccine supply to eliminate vaccination waitlists by May 1, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced on Friday. Wolf added that, by the end of March, every Pennsylvanian in Phase 1A who is currently eligible for a vaccine will be able to schedule an appointment to get vaccinated, the Inquirer reported. 

According to the Inquirer, the pace of the vaccine rollout would need to speed up to ensure vaccine availability for all 10.2 million adults in Pennsylvania before July 4. 

Pennsylvania is currently operating in Phase 1A of vaccine distribution, providing doses for residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, health care workers, all people over 65, and people over 16 with high-risk conditions. 

Philadelphia is administering vaccines to members of Phase 1A and Phase 1B, which include essential workers and other vulnerable groups.