Coronavirus Watch: Biden calls on Americans to mask up for 100 days after inauguration

President-elect Joe Biden plans to ask Americans to wear a face mask for 100 days after he is inaugurated to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, and he pledged to publicly take a vaccine when it's available to encourage the public to get vaccinated.

"Just 100 days to mask, not forever. And I think we'll see a significant reduction," Biden said in an interview Thursday.

As for a nationwide lockdown? It's not on the table, Dr. Celine Gounder, an infectious disease expert and a member of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ transition team, told CNN.

It's Friday, and this is the Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network. Here's the most significant news of the day, as of 2:30 p.m. ET:

• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she was backing down from months-long demands for trillions in new coronavirus relief to support a $900 billion bipartisan deal.
• The head of the World Health Organization is concerned that the vaccine may lead many to believe that the COVID-19 pandemic is over.
• The Navajo Nation is in dire straits. The nation has requested a Major Disaster Declaration from the federal government as COVID-19 cases surge amid shortages of medical supplies, personnel and hospital beds. 
• California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a regional stay-at-home order on Thursday that would go into effect when a region hits the ICU capacity threshold. Four regions — all but the San Francisco Bay area — could meet that threshold “within a day or two," he said.
• Dr. Anthony Fauci said Friday that he accepted Biden's offer to be his chief medical officer. "Absolutely, I said yes right on the spot," Fauci told the "TODAY" show.
• Job gains have slowed for five straight months with November only adding 245,000 jobs with unemployment dipping to 6.7%.

Today's numbers: The U.S. has reported more than 14 million cases and 277,000 deaths. Globally, there have been over 65 million cases and 1.5 million fatalities. See the numbers in your area here, and check out where cases are rising here.

What do you want to know about the vaccine? We're taking your vaccine questions through this online form, and we'll answer them here. You asked: Is it ethical to give people a placebo when a lifesaving vaccine is available? Should those who received placebos in the first two trials be given preferential access to active vaccine to thank them for their sacrifice?

There is no consensus among ethicists and public health officials on either point. Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific adviser to Operation Warp Speed, said trial participants should be first in line to be vaccinated. But they were not mentioned Tuesday in a meeting by the CDC board that recommends who should get the vaccine first.

Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna conducted large trials of 44,000 and 30,000 people, respectively, in which half of the volunteers received a placebo. Participants don't know which they received. Continuing to compare the placebo and active vaccine groups could help researchers better understand how different demographic groups, such as the elderly, respond to the vaccine and identify any unexpected longer-term health issues. But that information will never become available if placebo recipients are vaccinated in the coming months. Read more.

– Grace Hauck, Paste BN breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck