'The weapon that will end the war': First coronavirus vaccine shots given in U.S. Ben Guarino, Ariana Eunjung Cha, Josh Wood and Griff Witte, The Washington Post Dec. 14, 2020 FacebookTwitterEmail NEW YORK -- With a quick jab to a nurse's left deltoid, America entered a new phase in its fight against the coronavirus on Monday. The injection to Sandra Lindsay's arm at Long Island Jewish Medical Center made her the first American to receive the coronavirus vaccine outside a clinical trial. The small shot represented a giant leap in efforts to beat back the virus, a moonshot worth of hope amid a pandemic that has infected more than 16 million and killed more than 300,000 nationwide.