Mr. Biden also vowed more testing and military help for hospitals but said lockdowns were not on the cards just now. “This is not March of 2020,” he said. “We’re prepared. We know more.” Only one death in the US has been linked to the new variant: a 50-year-old from Harris County, Texas, who had an underlying health condition and was unvaccinated. On Tuesday, Mr. Biden acknowledged that some vaccinated Americans would also be infected, but he stressed that the unvaccinated have “a significantly higher risk of ending up in the hospital, or even dying.” “If you’re not fully vaccinated, you have reason to be concerned,” said an unmasked Mr. Biden, who coughed into his hand during his remarks. The president said that individuals vaccinated and who have had no exposure to Covid-19 may go ahead with Christmas celebrations. The White House said the new measures would “mitigate the impact unvaccinated individuals have on our healthcare system.” He acknowledged that his vaccine mandates have been “unpopular” in the same speech. “My administration has put them in place not to control your life, but to save your life and the lives of others,” he said.
The measures are:
- From January onwards, 500 million at-home quick tests (antigen/flow) will be purchased and provided gratis to all Americans who request them. Kits would now cost $7-$15 (£5-£11) over-the-counter, and availability varies by region.
- 1,000 military medical personnel will be sent to medical centers in the next two months, five times the existing amount.
- The opening of additional government testing facilities around the country, the first being by Christmas in Nyc, has witnessed a significant increase in Omicron.
- Increased hospital capacity and essential supply distribution.
When a reporter asked on 6 December why the Biden administration had not made-at-home tests available free to every citizen, as the UK and Singapore have done, Ms. Psaki shot back: “Should we just send one to every American? Then what happens if every American has one test? How much does that cost, and then what happens after that?”
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