Biden declares COVID pandemic over, but administration’s actions say otherwise

SENATORS PRESS BIDEN ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS ON MONKEYPOX RESPONSE MISSTEPS

“The pandemic is over. We still have a problem with COVID. We’re still doing a lotta work on it,” said Biden during his 60 Minutes interview that aired Sunday. “It’s — but the pandemic is over. If you notice, no one’s wearing masks. Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape. And so I think it’s changing. And I think this is a perfect example of it,” said Biden.

Despite Biden’s off-the-cuff remark, the administration’s COVID-19 public health emergency remains in place through at least Oct. 13, though it is expected to be extended through the midterm elections. The emergency declaration has allowed the federal government to speed up authorization of COVID-19 treatments and required states to offer continuous enrollment for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Millions are at risk of losing their health insurance coverage when the public health emergency ends. Over 17% of Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program enrollees, or about 15 million people, will lose their coverage if the continuous enrollment requirement ends, per a Department of Health and Human Services report. The requirement has allowed people who may have exceeded income levels to qualify for the health programs to remain enrolled without temporary or permanent lapses.

The public health emergency has also made federal grant funding and supplemental appropriations available to state and local entities. So far, the Department of Health and Human Services has distributed over $153 billion in emergency grant funding to support the COVID-19 response, according to a tracker maintained by HHS. Some of the funding, which is allocated through a number of federal laws such as the CARES Act, is not contingent on the public health emergency declaration.

Just last month, Biden forgave billions in federal student loans based on emergency powers tied to the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden’s plan to forgive up to $20,000 in federal student loans to qualifying borrowers and extend a pause on payments through Dec. 31, 2021, relies on the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act. The legislation, which was first passed to help borrowers serving in the military after 9/11, gives the federal government the power to waive certain federal student loan requirements to support borrowers in the event of an emergency, such as a disaster or war.

The Biden administration has also asked Congress to approve an additional $22.4 billion to support its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing that the federal dollars are crucial to continue providing and developing COVID-19 vaccines and tests.

Biden’s remarks reflect a growing sentiment among the U.S. population as COVID-19 case numbers trend downward, though they were met with ire by some epidemiologists who thought it was premature to declare the pandemic fully over as hundreds continue to die of the virus each day.

As of Sept. 14, the seven-day average of daily new COVID-19 cases was 59,856, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The current seven-day average of new deaths is 344, and between Sept. 7 and 12, the seven-day daily average for new COVID-19 hospital admissions was 4,371.

Gregg Gonsalves, an associate professor of epidemiology at Yale, tweeted he had shared his dissatisfaction with the White House, saying Biden ignored the “devastating toll” that COVID-19 continues to take on the country out of “political expediency.”

“Saying the pandemic is over gets no one vaccinated, no one boosted. Saying the pandemic is over, gets no one access to care and treatment if they have no insurance,” said Gonsalves. “Clearly those of us in public health who still see unfinished business in a pandemic that is taking a devastating toll on this country will have to do this alone.”

Last week, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters that the COVID-19 pandemic was not over yet but that “the end is in sight.”

Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, said in contrast to Biden earlier this month that the pandemic wasn’t over but that the U.S. was reaching a new phase in which COVID-19 vaccination would become a yearly recommendation, as it is for the flu shot.

“The pandemic isn’t over. And we will remain vigilant, and of course, we continue to look for and prepare for unforeseen twists and turns,” said Jha on Sept. 6.

Biden acknowledged the effect that the pandemic had on the U.S. changing individuals’ “psyche” later in the interview but did not back away from his earlier remarks.

“The impact on the psyche of the American people as a consequence of the pandemic is profound,” Biden said. “Think of how that has changed everything. You know, people’s attitudes about themselves, their families, about the state of the nation, about the state of their communities. And so there’s a lot of uncertainty out there, a great deal of uncertainty. And we lost a million people.”

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It remains unclear if his declaration will have any impact on the administration’s stance on the current public health emergency. It also comes as the federal government looks to transition the COVID-19 response to the commercial market, which Dawn O’Connell, the assistant secretary for preparedness and response, signaled could start next year.