White House staff no longer tested daily for Covid-19



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White House spokesman Kevin Munoz said in a statement to CNN that the White House “maintains strong protocols related to Covid-19 in order to create a safe workplace for its employees,” such as the port mandatory mask, social distancing and “regular testing”.

“Our testing protocol is informed by a range of factors, including an employee’s immunization status, and is just one of many measures in place to mitigate risks in the workplace,” said Munoz .

Before the change, only those who came into contact with a top executive – like President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, or other senior executives – were tested daily. If a staff member was not going to come into contact with these people, they were already not being tested daily.

News of the test changes was first reported by Axios.
The Biden administration made significant changes to White House protocols under former President Donald Trump, who during his tenure long rejected the severity of the virus and avoided practices such as social distancing and wearing masks .

Masks have been mandatory, Covid-19 tests have been extended and room capacity measures have been put in place. Zeke Miller, chairman of the White House Correspondents Association, said in January that “things are different” in the White House now that Biden has taken over, adding that “all of these things make this place to work. a little safer “.

The situation in the White House reflects the state of the pandemic in the country as a whole, as many states and cities relax certain Covid protocols. However, concerns remain about the potential for another spike due to variants of the virus.

The number of daily coronavirus cases continues to decline and more than 2 million Americans are now vaccinated daily, but – from a political standpoint – the White House Covid-19 response team has prepared at worst. The White House is rushing to prevent and prepare for a potential fourth coronavirus outbreak as the most transmissible coronavirus variants spread across the United States.

The administration is investing billions of dollars to boost coronavirus preparedness, speed up the pace of vaccinations and work to prepare the public and governors for the prospect of another surge. Officials combed through the data to chart the trajectory of the virus, map different scenarios and develop plans for how the federal government would take action.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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