Last week, Congress passed an enormous spending bill that included $1.5 trillion to keep the government running and $13.6 billion in emergency aid for Ukraine. While this measure would avoid a government shutdown for the fiscal year, there’s a crucial piece of funding that was left out entirely.
An effort that would have added $15 billion in additional COVID-related funding for states was removed. The Biden administration had initially asked for $22.5 billion to keep pandemic efforts going. Some House Democrats were against it because the new aid would have been paid out of their own states’ cash stockpile. Republicans do not want to add more funds until past COVID spending is accounted for.
Thirty-five Republican senators led by Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) sent a letter to President Biden asking six specific questions. The questions included asking for an explanation about unspent funds from the American Rescue Plan passed in March 2021 and how they have been dispersed.
With dwindling money and U.S. COVID cases potentially on the rise again, The White House warns vital programs and efforts to combat upticks in cases will soon end. NPR reports The White House announced a COVID-19 program that pays to test, treat and vaccinate people who don’t have health insurance will be winding down.
Deputy coordinator for the White House COVID-19 response team, Natalie Quillian, echoed a warning stated in a letter written by the Biden administration to lawmakers on Tuesday.
“What we’re asking for is a modest investment to not squander the gains we’ve made over the last year,” said Natalie Quillian, deputy coordinator for the White House COVID-19 response team.
“We need to remember the dark days and how quickly a variant can come,” Quillian told NPR.
If there is no new funding passed, these are some of the things that will be lost:
- There will be a cut back shipments of monoclonal antibody treatments to states by 30% next week. The nation’s supply of those treatments could run out as soon as May.
- The Biden administration has enough vaccines available for immunocompromised people to get a fourth dose. However, if everyone needs another booster as Pfizer seeks approval from the CDC this week, there won’t be enough money for that campaign.
- Help to domestic manufacturers of at-home coronavirus tests would not extend beyond June.
- Active surveillance for new variants will also be stopped, and research into better, longer-lasting COVID vaccines will be hampered.
- The administration will have to scale back planned purchases of preventive treatments for immunocompromised people and oral antiviral treatments like Paxlovid.
The Omicron sub-variant BA.2, which is leading to increasing cases in countries like the U.K. and China, now accounts for 23% of new COVID cases in the U.S. While it is said BA.2 is 30% more transmissible than Omicron, it’s not determined to be more severe.
Still, as the U.S. looks to shift into the endemic phase of the pandemic, the principle of “stay ready, so you don’t have to be ready” should preside. There were 1,399 COVID deaths yesterday alone – far too many with all the tools we have at our disposal. Vaccinations should remain free, and testing should be readily available as mask mandates continue to be repealed. Not extending these problems would be a betrayal to our elderly, disabled, and immunocompromised communities.