President Donald Trump recently signed an $8.3 billion measure to help tackle the coronavirus outbreak on Friday. Current stats show that it has now killed more than a dozen people in the U.S. and infected more than 200.
What We Know:
- The new piece of legislation provides federal public health agencies with money for vaccines, tests, and potential treatments. It will aid state and local governments towards preparations to effectively combat the threat. The rapid spread of the virus has rocked financial markets, interrupted travel, and threatens to affect everyday life in the United States.
- Trump planned on signing the bill while visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, but later told reporters Friday that concerns were raised about “one person who was potentially infected” who worked at the CDC. Trump said the person has since tested negative for the new virus, and the CDC was added to his schedule on Friday.
- The Senate ended up passing the $8.3 billion measure on Thursday to help tackle the outbreak in hopes of settling the general public’s fears and preemptively accelerating the government’s response to the virus. Its rapid spread is threatening to upend everyday life in the U.S. as well as across the globe.
- “In situations like this, I believe no expense should be spared to protect the American people, and in crafting this package none was,” said Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala. “It’s an aggressive plan, a vigorous plan that has received an overwhelming positive reaction.”
- This plan ended up being about triple the $2.5 billion amount outlined by the White House 10 days ago. The Trump proposal was immediately discarded by members of Congress from both parties. Instead, the bipartisan leadership of both the House and Senate Appropriations committees negotiated to increase the figure and other provisions. Bipartisan cooperation such as this is common on the panel but increasingly rare elsewhere in Washington.
BNA will continue to provide you with updates as new developments arise.
