Washington – Members of the White House COVID-19 Response Team and Federal Public Health Officers held a press conference on Monday on the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic, while President Joe Biden and a group of Senate Republicans are set to meet for an emergency of COVID-19. relief package.
Andy Slavitt, senior adviser to the White House COVID-19 response team, announced that the first COVID-19 test in the house comes online and can test with 90% accuracy within 15 minutes. The test, from a company called Ellume, is expected to cost about $ 30.
Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to the president, stressed the importance of being vaccinated as soon as it is the person’s turn. Vaccination will not only slow down the spread of the virus and protect individuals, but it will prevent the emergence of additional COVID-19 variants.
“When the vaccine is available to you, please vaccinate,” Fauci insisted.
Fauci has tried to instill confidence in the effectiveness of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, which has an efficacy rate of around 70% – lower than the Pfizer and Moderna efficiencies, but still an incredibly useful tool for COVID-19 fight. The vaccine will reduce hospitalizations and the rate of serious illness, and since it is a single dose, it may be more useful for some populations, Fauci said.
Slavitt said the government in Biden is concerned that some healthcare providers will have to withhold doses for second shots if it is not necessary. That does not have to happen and should not happen, Slavitt said, assuring Americans that there will be enough supplies for the second dose.
January was the deadliest month of the pandemic, and the death toll from COVID-19 is more than 441,000, according to Johns Hopkins University. The Biden administration plans to kill another 90,000 Americans in the next four weeks.
While Mr. Biden has taken steps to promote the distribution of vaccine doses in the states, he continues to encourage Americans to wear masks and follow social guidelines to reduce the spread of the coronavirus. New coronavirus strains detected in three countries, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil, have been reported in the US, and Fauci warned last week that the new variant could surpass the cases of the earlier strain.
Mr. Biden has drawn up a $ 1.9 billion economic rescue plan to combat the economic consequences of the pandemic and to promote the testing and distribution of vaccines. However, the cost of the president’s plan is being met with skepticism from Senate Republicans, and a group of ten GOP senators will meet Monday night with Mr. Biden meets to discuss their own proposal.
The Republican plan totals $ 600 billion, Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday and includes more targeted direct payments to Americans. Democratic leaders in Congress are currently preparing to take the first step this week in a legislative process that will allow Biden’s coronavirus relief package to succeed without Republican support.