Below are key actions the Admin took just yesterday to protect the health and well-being of the American people:
· The President announced that the U.S. and Canada have mutually agreed to close the northern border to nonessential travel.
· The President announced he is invoking the Defense Production Act.
· The Department of Housing and Urban Development is halting foreclosures and evictions for families with FHA-insured mortgages.
· The Department of Labor announced up to $100 million in dislocated worker grants in response to the coronavirus national health emergency.
· The White House worked with the private sector to launch a central website where families, students, and educators can access online education technologies.
· The President launched a partnership with the Ad Council, media networks, and digital platforms to communicate public services announcements about the coronavirus.
· The Navy will be deploying two medical ships to help support impacted areas.
What You Need To Know | President Trump’s Coronavirus Response Efforts
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President Trump and his Administration are working every day to protect the health and wellbeing of Americans and respond to the coronavirus.
WHOLE-OF-GOVERNMENT RESPONSE
· President Trump signed legislation securing $8.3 billion for coronavirus response.
· President Trump declared a national emergency, inviting States, territories, and tribes to access over $42 billion in existing funding.
· To leverage the resources of the entire government, the President created a White House Coronavirus Task Force to coordinate response.
· The Vice President named Dr. Deborah Birx to serve as the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator.
TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS
· In January, President Trump reacted quickly to implement travel restrictions on travel from China, buying us valuable time to respond to the virus.
· The President has announced further travel restrictions on global hotspots, including Europe, the United Kingdom and Ireland, and Iran.
· American citizens returning from travel-restricted countries are being routed to specific airports, where they can be screened and isolated as needed.
· The Administration raised travel warnings to their highest level for other hot spot locations, like Japan and South Korea.
· The President has expanded airport screenings to identify travelers showing symptoms and instituted mandatory quarantines.
· The President announced that the U.S. and Canada have mutually agreed to close the northern border to nonessential travel.
EXPANDING TESTING ACCESSIBILITY
· The FDA issued emergency approval for new commercial coronavirus tests to significantly expand testing across the country.
· The President secured legislation that will ensure Americans are able to be tested for free.
· The Administration is working with state and local partners and the private sector to open up drive-through testing sites.
· The Administration is working with the private sector to develop a website that Americans can utilize to determine whether they need a test and, if so, where to get it.
· HHS is providing funding to help accelerate the development of rapid diagnostic tests for the coronavirus.
· The FDA cut red tape to expand testing availability.
· The Administration is working to provide states with flexibility to approve coronavirus testing laboratories.
· Admiral Brett Giroir – the Assistant Secretary for Health and head of the Public Health Service – has been appointed to coordinate coronavirus testing efforts.
· The FDA is empowering states to authorize tests developed and used by laboratories in their states.
HELPING IMPACTED BUSINESSES
· The Small Business Administration has announced disaster loans which provide impacted businesses with up to $2 million.
· The President has met with bank executives, insurers, pharmaceutical executives, and other industry leaders.
· The President directed the Energy Department to purchase large quantities of crude oil for the strategic reserve.
· President Trump has held calls and meetings with business leaders from the pharmaceutical industry, airlines, health insurers, grocery stores, retail stores, banks, and more.
HELPING FAMILIES AND WORKING AMERICANS
· The Administration negotiated legislation which will provide tax credits for eligible businesses that give paid leave to Americans affected by the virus.
· The Administration took action to provide more flexibility in unemployment insurance programs for workers impacted by the coronavirus.
· The President has directed the Education Department to waive interest on student loans held by the federal government.
· The Treasury Department is deferring tax payments for certain impacted individuals and businesses.
· President Trump has called on Congress to pass a payroll tax cut.
· USDA announced new flexibilities to allow meal service during school closures.
· USDA announced a new collaboration with the private sector to deliver nearly 1,000,000 meals a week to students in rural schools closed due to the coronavirus.
· The Department of Housing and Urban Development is halting foreclosures and evictions for families with FHA-insured mortgages.
· The Department of Labor announced up to $100 million in dislocated worker grants in response to the coronavirus national health emergency.
· The White House worked with the private sector to launch a central website where families, students, and educators can access online education technologies.
INFORMING THE PUBLIC
· The Administration launched a website – coronavirus.gov – to keep the public informed about the outbreak.
· The President launched a partnership with the Ad Council, media networks, and digital platforms to communicate public services announcements about the coronavirus.
· The President announced guidelines for Americans to follow and do their part to stem the spread of the virus.
· The Task Force is holding nearly daily press conferences to provide the American people with the latest information.
· The Task Force has recommended mitigation strategies to heavily impacted communities, like those in New York, Washington, and California.
· CMS announced guidance to protect vulnerable elderly Americans and limit medically unnecessary visits to nursing homes.
SUPPORTING PATIENTS AND HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS
· In January, the Administration declared the coronavirus to be a public health emergency.
· The President donated his fourth-quarter 2019 salary to the Department of Health and Human Services for coronavirus response efforts.
· The President took action to give HHS authority to waive rules and regulations so that healthcare providers have maximum flexibility to respond to this outbreak.
· CMS is giving flexibility to Medicare Advantage and Part D plans to waive cost-sharing for coronavirus tests and treatment.
· CMS created new billing codes for coronavirus tests to promote better tracking of the public health response.
· The Administration announced that health plans with health savings accounts will be able to cover coronavirus testing and treatment without co-payments.
· CMS dramatically expanded telehealth for Medicare beneficiaries, ensuring more patients can access their doctors remotely while avoiding exposure.
· The VA established 19 emergency operations centers across the country and put in place visitation restrictions to limit patients’ exposure.
· CMS and the VA are working to limit nonessential, elective medical procedures to free up healthcare resources.
· The Navy will be deploying two medical ships to help support impacted areas.
STRENGTHENING ESSENTIAL MEDICAL SUPPLIES
· The President announced he is invoking the Defense Production Act.
· The President signed a memorandum directing his Administration to make general-use face masks available to healthcare workers.
· HHS announced it will be purchasing 500 million N95 respirators for the Strategic National Stockpile.
· The Department of Defense announced it will be providing 5 million respirator masks and 2,000 specialized ventilators to assist.
DEVELOPING VACCINES AND THERAPEUTICS
· The Administration is working to help accelerate the development of therapeutics and a vaccine to combat the disease.
· The Trump Administration is actively working with drug manufacturers to monitor any potential drug supply chain issues.
· The Administration is expanding research and consulting with experts to better understand the transmission of coronavirus.
· The National Institutes of Health has announced the beginning of a clinical trial for a coronavirus vaccine candidate.
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