United States President Joe Biden will encourage Americans who have not yet been vaccinated against Covid-19 to get their shots to protect themselves from the widely-spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus, the White House has said.

A White House official said the country will be “nearing” 160 million people fully vaccinated by the end of the week.

“He will speak to the American people about the strong progress that the country has made in recovery because of its robust vaccination campaign, as well as the importance of every eligible American getting vaccinated, especially as the Delta variant continues to grow among unvaccinated people across the country,” the official said about Biden's planned remarks.