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President Biden mentioned late Sunday that COVID-19 stays a problem, however he thinks the pandemic stage is over.
“The pandemic is over. We nonetheless have an issue with COVID. We’re nonetheless doing a number of work on it. It’s — however the pandemic is over,” Mr. Biden mentioned in an interview on CBS’ “60 Minutes.”
Mr. Biden’s feedback are a part of a shift from treating the coronavirus as a manageable menace as a substitute of a hair-on-fire disaster.
Roughly 30,000 individuals are hospitalized for the virus within the U.S., a low degree in comparison with the remainder of the disaster, which started in early 2020.
The Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention up to date its steering in latest months to give attention to extreme illness as a substitute of routine testing, strict quarantines and bodily distancing.
The White Home says it wants new funding from Congress to maintain the virus in examine, although Mr. Biden’s assertion that the pandemic is over might complicate his bid for $22 billion in a short-term spending measure lawmakers are contemplating to keep away from a authorities shutdown.
Republicans had been leery of offering billions extra for the response as a result of the Biden workforce was in a position to shift funds from different pots of cash earlier within the 12 months.
Specialists say there isn’t a formal mechanism for declaring an finish to the pandemic part, so it’s extra of a way of thinking or assertion by leaders.
The U.S. nonetheless designates COVID-19 as a public well being emergency and the World Well being Group considers it a public well being emergency of worldwide concern, although WHO’s chief just lately mentioned the pandemic part is coming to a detailed.
“Final week, the variety of weekly reported deaths from Covid-19 was the bottom since March 2020,” WHO Director-Common Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus mentioned. “We now have by no means been in a greater place to finish the pandemic. We’re not there but, however the finish is in sight.”
For extra info, go to The Washington Occasions COVID-19 useful resource web page.
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