The New $10 Billion COVID-19 Deal Leaves Uninsured People at Risk

When Senators announced on Monday that they reached a deal for $10 billion in additional funding for the coronavirus response, many public health experts were dismayed that the package will not include aid for vaccines abroad. But another area that is likely to get shorted is the program that has covered the costs of coronavirus tests, treatments and vaccines for uninsured Americans. That lack of funding could not only hurt the most vulnerable Americans, experts say, but also fuel future outbreaks of COVID-19. The program for uninsured people began winding down late last month. The Biden Administration repeatedly asked lawmakers for $22.5 billion more in emergency pandemic relief, warning that the government would soon not have enough vaccines for every American to receive another booster and that it would run out of money to buy more monoclonal antibodies to treat the coronavirus. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The new funding bill is less than half of what the Administration requested. “This will obviously not meet all of those dire needs in this country,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said at a press conference on Monday. The new bill will go toward purchasing more COVID-19 vaccines, tests and therapeutic drug treatments. Psaki said the Administration will continue to push for global coronavirus aid, but that may not happen until later this spring. It remains unclear whether the domestic response will get any additional support. In the m...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized COVID-19 Source Type: news