[ad_1]
During a trip to Chicago on Thursday, President Biden vigorously defended his use of vaccination requirements in an attempt to end the coronavirus pandemic.
“We know there is no other way to beat the pandemic than to vaccinate the vast majority of Americans,” Biden said in a speech at a data center on the outskirts of Elk Grove Village. . “We are still not there. We have to beat this thing.
As the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus swept the country over the summer, the Biden administration warmed to the idea of requiring vaccinations for federal workers, announcing a mandate in July. Instead of proof of vaccination, federal workers were given the option to undergo regular COVID-19 testing, but critics accused the president of denying workers their personal freedom to choose to be vaccinated. Biden, however, has failed to push vaccine warrants in certain other sectors and has so far refused to require airline passengers to present vaccine passports in order to travel.
In his remarks Thursday, he said rushing to warrants was not his team’s “first instinct”, but he deemed it necessary to keep the federal government running safely.
“People, the vaccination requirements are working,” Biden said. “I know that vaccine requirements are a difficult remedy – unpopular for some, political for others.”
Biden’s tenure in July affected nearly 2 million employees across the country, and the rule was eventually extended to members of the military and some workers in the private sector, such as nursing home staff. .
Hospitals, especially in areas with low vaccination rates, continue to experience staff shortages and overcrowded intensive care units. After Biden announced that some healthcare workers needed to get vaccinated or jeopardize Medicare and Medicaid funding in their workplaces, fears grew that hospitals in places like New York City, where 64% of the population has been fully vaccinated, face staff shortages.
These fears, however, turned out to be exaggerated. Data showed that in response to the mandate of healthcare workers, New York City saw a marked increase in the number of healthcare workers who received immunizations.
Other states across the country are experiencing similar spikes in vaccination rates among the medical community, according to a note released by White House staff Thursday morning.
“The immunization requirements for healthcare workers have been shown time and time again to work. They increase vaccination rates and result in a limited number of quits and layoffs. They are an essential tool to help protect American patients and healthcare workers, ”the memo reads.
The memo, largely reflected in Biden’s remarks, touted rising vaccination rates in the health, education and business sectors and called the sweeping rules helping to boost the economy.
Biden said Thursday he had met with private sector leaders, including executives from Disney and Lockheed Martin, to discuss their mitigation plans and encourage broad mandates to lead by example across the board. ‘industry.
“This is something that excites me: Fox News demands vaccinations for all employees,” Biden said, berating the conservative cable network, whose hosts regularly attack him for tenure. “Leave me alone. Fox News!”
The White House’s forceful message on immunization requirements comes against a backdrop of belated support for Biden’s overall performance. According to a recent YouGov / Yahoo News poll, the president’s approval rating has fallen to 42% in part because of his inability to push his national agenda through Congress and because of the continued fallout from his handling of the troop withdrawal Americans from Afghanistan.
The White House is hoping that a drop in new COVID-19 cases boosted by vaccine requirements will help trigger a rebound in Biden’s approval numbers. Yet, it is not known if the worst of the pandemic is behind us. About 68 million Americans have yet to receive a vaccine, according to data from the New York Times.
“We’re going in the right direction, but we still have a long way to go,” Biden said, adding, “We have a plan. We have the tools. We just have to finish the job. So for the love of God, for your own good, for the good of your families, get vaccinated.
____
Learn more about Yahoo News:
[ad_2]
Source link