Attacking anti-vaxxers, Biden mandates widespread COVID shots, tests

WASHINGTON, Sept. 9 (Reuters) – President Joe Biden on Thursday targeted vaccine resistance in America, announced guidelines requiring most federal employees to receive COVID-19 vaccines and urging large employers to vaccinate their workers weekly or to be tested.

The new measures, which Biden outlined in White House statements, would apply to about two-thirds of all US workers who work for companies with more than 100 employees.

“We have been patient,” Biden told the millions of Americans who have turned down coronavirus vaccinations. “But our patience is failing and your refusal has cost us all.”

Taken together, the guidelines and Biden’s speech represented the most aggressive steps yet to stimulate gunshot-resistant Americans amid a surge in COVID-19 cases from the rapidly spreading Delta variant.

The surge poses an increased risk not only for the country, but also for a president who has promised to take control of the virus and who said earlier this year the country is “closer than ever to our independence from to explain a deadly virus ”.

Despite a full throttle campaign by the Biden government calling on all eligible Americans to get the free vaccines, just over 53% of Americans are fully vaccinated, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

On Thursday, Biden warned that “we are in a difficult phase and it could be a while longer”.

According to Biden’s plan, the government will also require vaccinations for more than 17 million healthcare workers in hospitals and other facilities participating in Medicare and Medicaid welfare programs for poor, disabled and elderly Americans, senior administration officials said.

The new vaccination regulations apply to about 100 million workers, or about two-thirds of all workers in the United States, officials said.

The plan is likely to face legal challenge and was immediately belittled by Biden’s Republican opposition. It can take months before the effects of the mandates can be felt.

Previously, Biden, a Democrat, requested a federal employee to be vaccinated or tested. Federal employees now have 75 days to get vaccinated or face dismissal unless they fall into limited exception categories.

SIGNIFICANT FINES

The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will be enacting regulations for private companies to require vaccines or tests in the coming weeks. OSHA plans to take enforcement action against those who failed to comply, with substantial fines of nearly $ 14,000 per violation.

The medical work obligation is implemented by a regulation of the health authority, which is to be published in October.

The government also plans to increase testing capacity for the virus.

United States President Joe Biden delivers a speech in honor of the unions in the East Room of the White House in Washington on September 8, 2021. REUTERS / Kevin Lamarque

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Biden will use his powers under the Defense Production Act to get the industry to speed up the production of the tests, and large retailers like Walmart (WMT.N), Amazon.com and Kroger (KR.N) will be doing the tests for Sell ​​the next three months at cost to make them more affordable, officials said.

Critics said the Biden administration did not do enough testing during its seven-month term.

The full recovery of the US economy depends on containing the spread of the virus, a major health and political goal of the president, who entered the White House in January.

The federal unions proposed on Thursday that the vaccination mandate be accepted.

MORE THAN 654,000 DEATHS

The disease has killed more than 654,000 people in the United States, and deaths and hospital admissions have risen sharply as the easily transmitted Delta variant of the virus spreads.

The White House’s COVID recovery plans and projected US economic recovery were based on the vast majority of eligible Americans being vaccinated that year. But the public health issue has become politicized, with a vocal minority opposed to gunshots and masking duties, arguing that they are a violation of their individual rights.

The proliferation of the Delta variant has raised concerns as children go back to school while it also unsettles investors, upsets plans to return to the company’s office, and curbs hiring.

Biden’s plan also tells large entertainment venues to require vaccinations or tests for entry.

The White House plans to offer booster vaccinations that provide additional protection to fully vaccinated people. This contradicts the arguments of the World Health Organization and other proponents who say rich countries should, given limited global vaccine supplies, suspend refreshment programs until more people around the world are vaccinated.

However, because Delta causes more breakthrough symptomatic infections in fully vaccinated individuals, most vaccinated Americans want a booster, a recent Reuters / Ipsos opinion poll found. Boosters could start in the week of September 20th.

Abbott Laboratories (ABT.N) and other test makers are looking to ramp up production as cases rise after scaling back in recent months. CVS Health Corp (CVS.N) recently limited the number of home tests customers can purchase.

The White House said the federal government cannot mandate vaccines nationwide, but has encouraged school districts, businesses and other institutions to require vaccinations.

Reporting by Jeff Mason, Ahmed Aboulenein, David Shepardson; Additional reporting from Steve Holland, Trevor Hunnicutt, and Susan Heavey; Writing by Jeff Mason, Steve Holland, and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Heather Timmons, Bill Berkrot, and Howard Goller

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