APhA: Biden’s Plan to Combat COVID-19 Is a ‘Strong Start’

On Thursday, president-elect Joe Biden revealed his $1.9 trillion coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) proposal, which urges the need for more robust vaccination efforts.

The plan, entitled the “American Rescue Plan,” includes a goal of administering 100 million vaccines by the hundredth day of his administration, while delivering more economic stimulus and investing in the safe reopening of schools. In addition to vaccination goals, Biden also proposes an additional stimulus check of $1400 for Americans, extending a temporary boost in unemployment benefits, and a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures through September.¹

Even amid increased vaccinations, the president-elect also said he will emphasize mask wearing in the first 100 days of his presidency as a means to slow the spread of the virus.¹

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) issued a statement in support of the plan, calling it a “strong start to rescue the country from the pandemic.”²

In the statement, Scott J. Knoer, executive president and CEO of APhA, said, “It not only allocates billions of dollars to launch a sweeping national plan for vaccination and testing, it also invests in public health workers for outreach and contact tracing, addresses health disparities, protects residents of long-term care facilities and workers in essential industries, and proposes billions for the administration of vaccines.”²

According to the CDC, approximately 11 million Americans have received the first dose of the vaccine and more than 30 million doses have been distributed as of January 14, 2021.³ 

“The incoming administration has stated that this is a race against time––and we agree,” Knoer said.² “It is essential that this plan builds on utilizing the army of ready, willing and able pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacy interns in all practice settings to accelerate the vaccination of all Americans. Approximately 400,000 pharmacy personnel have been trained for precisely this moment––and now is the time to mobilize them.”

References

1. Alonso-Zaldivar A, Bill Barrow. Biden unveils $1.9T plan to stem COVID-19 and steady economy. The Associated Press. Published January 15, 2020. Accessed January 15, 2020. https://apnews.com/article/biden-unveil-plan-coronavirus-economy-a512629b3af12e89ab42097a81668960
2. APhA: President-Elect Biden’s COVID plan is a strong start to rescue the country from the pandemic. Statement. American Pharmacist’s Association; January 14, 2021. Accessed January 15, 2021. https://www.pharmacist.com/press-release/apha-president-elect-bidens-covid-plan-strong-start-rescue-country-pandemic
3. COVID-19 vaccines. CDC. Last updated January 15, 2021. Accessed January 15, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/index.ht