The Biden administration on March 2 unveiled a new COVID-19 strategy that President Joe Biden said would help get the United States back to “a more normal routine.”
The 90-page National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan seeks to reduce severe illness while keeping schools and businesses open.
It includes a “test-to-treat” program that would provide antiviral pills at pharmacies to people who test positive for the virus. If funded by Congress, it would also expand research at the National Institutes of Health and launch new “centers of excellence” across the country meant to help people with “long COVID.”
“This plan lays out the roadmap to help us fight COVID-19 in the future as we move America from crisis to a time when COVID-19 does not disrupt our daily lives and is something we prevent, protect against, and treat,” the White House said. “We are not going to just ‘live with COVID.’ Because of our work, we are no longer going to let COVID-19 dictate how we live.”
During his State of the Union speech on March 1, Biden touted his administration’s efforts to distribute vaccines, provide tests and masks, and purchase COVID therapeutics. He later added that new stockpiles of masks, tests, and pills hinge on Congress providing “the funds we need.”
“We provided free vaccines, treatments, tests, and masks,” Biden said. “Of course, continuing this costs money. I will soon send Congress a request. The vast majority of Americans have used these tools and may want to again, so I expect Congress to pass it quickly.”
Biden also promised to order more COVID tests that will be distributed for free.
White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients told reporters on March 2 that the Department of Health and Human Services had briefed Congress on the near-term cost of its new COVID plan and was still finalizing the long-term costs to relate in its request to Congress.
Biden already signed into law the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan meant to address hardship from the pandemic. During his speech, Biden announced a new chief prosecutor for pandemic-related fraud under the Department of Justice meant to chase after those who stole billions of dollars from those relief funds.
