The CDC nominee’s contentious hearing came as Covid rates soar again.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the CDC, faced a contentious confirmation hearing March 11, the same day Florida broke another Covid-19 case record and became the first state to hit 2 million infections.
With violent attacks and a deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 still fresh and Covid-19 cases once again surging, Rochelle Walensky, the nominee to lead the CDC and become the agency’s first woman to hold the director’s position, faced an arduous confirmation hearing March 11 before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases across the country, President Biden announced Thursday that he will sign a new COVID-19 relief bill costing up to $1.9 trillion, reports CBS News. The legislation includes measures to contain COVID-19; offer direct relief to families, schools, and businesses; and include funding for the effort to distribute a vaccine.
Events and politics in recent weeks have played a significant role in complicating the distribution of that vaccine. On Jan. 6, crimes on the U.S. Capitol led to the death of a police officer, sent dozens of others to the hospital, and injured scores of others. The violence impacted Washington’s ability to handle the rollout: The region’s biggest vaccination site, as well as several other essential administrative functions, were moved out of the federal city due to security concerns.
The New York Times reported that “at least 25,000 doses were thrown out in December” due to the “delayed rollout.”
As of Wednesday evening, 447,000 doses have been distributed in the District of Columbia, a spokeswoman for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser told USA TODAY. The city has administered 100,000 doses, she said. That means about 23% of the distributed vaccine has been administered.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has unveiled a $1.9 trillion relief package with direct payments to Americans, expanded unemployment insurance and a slew of other measures.
The goal, according to Democrats, isn’t just to crush the deadliest pandemic in a century, but a bigger wave of ideas – they want the recovery package to help reverse “an economic downturn, exacerbated by out-of-control climate change, entrenched poverty, and a persistent urban crisis.”
The pandemic has wiped out decades of wealth gains for low-income families, all but ruined women’s economic momentum and exacerbated an inequality problem through the roof, according to USA TODAY’s analysis of government data on the economy.
Tens of millions of Americans saw their wealth squeezed to levels not seen since 2005. Some states, especially minorities, saw even more startling losses in wealth.
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