Trump urged to encourage supporters to get jabs

The top US infectious disease expert says it would be "a game-changer" if ex-President Donald Trump encouraged Republicans to get the Covid vaccine. It is reported by BBC.

"It will make all the difference in the world. He's a very widely popular person among Republicans."- Dr Anthony Fauci told Fox news_copy this Sunday. 

A recent US opinion poll showed as many as 49% of Republican male supporters did not want to get vaccinated. Mr Trump last month said "everybody, go get your shot" at a conservative forum. It was the very first time he publicly encouraged Americans to do get vaccinated. He has not commented on the issue after.

Mr Trumps was privately vaccinated in January, but he was absent when four other ex-presidents – Barack Obama, George W Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter – appeared last week in a public service announcement for the vaccination.

He remains a major force in the Republican party, getting a warm reception at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the end of last month.

The US is by far the world's worst-hit country by the pandemic, with more than 530,000 Covid-related deaths and nearly 29.5 million infections, according to Johns Hopkins University.