The end of the three-year-long state of emergency declared by the U.S. government in response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been marked. President Joe Biden signed a motion in Congress to put a stop to the emergency, which came just a few weeks before it was going to expire along with another health emergency.
Resolution to Terminate the Covid-19 National Emergency
- President signs resolution to terminate Covid-19 national emergency.
- Vice President Joe Biden signs HJRes 7 despite previous opposition.
- President signed HJRes 7 on April 10, 2023, officially terminating the national emergency related to Covid-19.
- National emergency allowed government to implement measures to combat virus and support nation’s economic, medical, and welfare systems.
- Some countermeasures already successful, while others still being phased out.
- Public health emergency, which led to immigration controls at US-Mexico border, set to end on May 11.
- Termination of the national emergency indicates a shift in the US response to Covid-19 pandemic.
When it was finally approved in February by the Republican-controlled House chamber, nearly 200 Democrats in that house voted against it. Once the bill was approved by the Senate by a vote of 68 to 23, Vice President Biden informed senators that he would sign the bill.
As it became apparent that Congress was taking steps to accelerate the conclusion of the national emergency, the administration stated that it immediately began working to speed agency measures for a return to normal operating procedures.
The COVID-19 mortgage forbearance scheme that is administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development is scheduled to expire at the end of May. In the meantime, the Department of Veterans Affairs is going back to requiring in-home visits in order to assess enrollment for caregiver aid.
The telehealth provisions that were established as COVID-19 took effect were extended by legislators for another two years last year, which has led healthcare systems across the country to frequently give care via smartphone or computer.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the COVID-19 virus has been responsible for the deaths of more than 1.13 million people across the country over the course of the past three years, including 1,773 individuals in the week that ended on April 5.
On January 31, 2020, Alex Azar, who was serving as the Secretary of Health and Human Services under then-President Donald Trump, made the initial declaration of a public health emergency. In March of the same year, Trump proclaimed the COVID-19 outbreak to be a national emergency.
Since he assumed office in January 2021, Vice President Joe Biden has regularly prolonged the state of emergency, and he has also expanded the use of emergency powers since he moved into the White House.
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