- US President Joe Biden described the increasing Covid-19 infections as an “American tragedy.”
- He said all federal workers should be vaccinated or tested.
- Misinformation about vaccination is rampant in the country.
US President Joe Biden stepped up on Thursday to combat the spread of Covid-19’s surging Delta variant, requiring every US federal worker to either declare that they are fully vaccinated or wear a mask and be tested.
In a speech on his government’s new initiatives, the senior Democrat said: “We have the tools to prevent this new wave of Covid from closing our businesses, schools and society, as we saw last year.”
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The White House stated before the speech that all 4 million federal employees and on-site contractors “will be required to prove their vaccination status.”
Those who have not declared that they have been fully vaccinated will be required to wear masks at work, keep physical distance from colleagues wherever they are, and undergo testing once or twice a week.
These measures have not met the vaccination requirements for federal workers-the government is considering how to protect federal workers and set an example for the private sector, so it is being considered.
Controversial restrictions
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But they marked a dramatic return of the controversial restrictions, which Biden predicted in June would be a relic of the past, when he announced that the United States would be able to enjoy the “Summer of Freedom”, including more social and face-to-face celebrations. .
Biden said that today, with the increase in hospitalizations and infections nationwide, Americans need to remain vigilant.
Biden said: “We are not completely out of the predicament, because the United States is now experiencing a pandemic, an unvaccinated pandemic,” this sentence will certainly anger some people who refuse to be vaccinated.
“If in fact you are not vaccinated, it will cause problems for yourself, your family and the people who work with you.”
Nevertheless, the President urged citizens not to politicize the issue of vaccinations or masks.
“This has nothing to do with the Red State and the Blue State. It’s actually about life and death.”
With the flood of vaccination misinformation, Biden said that it is time for some “outspoken words” to “use facts, science and truth” to eliminate false panic.
He almost begged people to get vaccinated because he described the pandemic as a heartbreaking “American tragedy.”
“People are dying-and will die-they don’t have to die,” he said. “If you are outside and have not been vaccinated, you don’t have to die.”
excitation
Biden said that he is instructing the Pentagon to study the Covid-19 vaccine to be included in the list of immunizations required for its members of the US military.
He also called on state and local governments to provide $100 as an incentive to encourage adherence to vaccination-this is an endorsement of what the White House has said has been successful cash-for-vaccination initiatives that have been implemented in some states.
“If incentives can help us defeat this virus, I believe we should use them. If we can get more people vaccinated, we will all benefit,” Biden said.
Biden urged private-sector employers to follow suit, and rules about vaccinations or wearing masks and regular testing should not only apply to federal workers.
He also sent a message to companies seeking federal contracts: “If you want to do business with the federal government, please get your employees vaccinated.”
The President also urged small and medium-sized companies to use federal reimbursement to give employees paid leave to vaccinate themselves and their families.
He called on all regions to open temporary clinics in the weeks before schools reopen to help more young people get vaccinated.
As the resurgence of Covid-19 reignited a heated debate in Congress about wearing masks, leading to ugly disputes between Republican and Democratic leaders, Biden’s love followed.
Several Republican lawmakers also publicly opposed the masking rule.
When Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican in the House of Representatives, was angry on Wednesday that the rules for wearing masks did not work, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi denounced him as an “idiot.”
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