US: Joe Biden announces national emergency extension beyond March 1 due to COVID-19 risk

United States (US) President Joe Biden announced on February 18 that the national emergency established in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic will be prolonged beyond March 1 due to the coronavirus' persistent threat to public health. The death of more than 900,000 Americans due to COVID-19, according to Biden, underscored the need for the federal government to respond to the pandemic with full capability.

Nearly two years ago, former President Donald Trump declared a national emergency to free up $50 billion in federal help. In a letter to the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the Senate on Friday, Biden stated, "There remains a need to continue this national emergency."

The White House made the letter public. The US emergency would have ended automatically had the President not sent a notice to Congress 90 days before the anniversary date of its declaration stating that it would be extended. Biden's decision to extend the state of emergency comes as a slew of local leaders in the United States relax pandemic restrictions as the Omicron wave recedes.

Mask mandate repealed in NY & Massachusetts

Last week, the Governors of New York and Massachusetts declared that certain mask regulations in their states will be repealed, following the lead of New Jersey, California, Connecticut, Delaware, and Oregon. As Omicron-related illnesses diminish, US health officials indicated earlier this week that they are ready for the next phase of the pandemic.

Furthermore, New York's state health commissioner confirmed yesterday that the booster shot mandate for healthcare workers, which was set to go into effect on Monday, would not be enforced. The decision was made in response to the fact that too many workers refused boosters, making it impossible for the state's health-care system to function normally while the requirement was in place.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been conducting temperature checks at select airports since mid-January, initially on passengers arriving from Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, and now on all passengers arriving from mainland China, in the previous 14 days. According to a CNN, despite the fact that the CDC has tested over 30,000 travellers in the last month, no single coronavirus case has been detected by airport temperature checks.

(With inputs from agencies)

Image: AP