Nearly all of the money in a key federal program to boost coronavirus testing, therapeutics and vaccines appears to have been committed or already shelled out, raising the potential that the Biden admin may have to ask Congress to approve additional aid.
WASHINGTON - Nearly all of the money in a key federal program to boost coronavirus testing, therapeutics and vaccines appears to have been committed or already shelled out, raising the potential that the Biden administration may have to ask Congress to approve additional aid.
"We will never let funding get in the way of our covid response, and remain in touch with Congress on resources needed to ensure we stay ahead of the virus and move toward the time when covid won't disrupt our daily lives," according to an official at the Office of Management and Budget. By the Biden administration's accounting, nearly all of the dollars in the HHS program, known as the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, have been allocated or obligated in some way, a budgetary term that essentially means the money is locked up in contracts or other formal commitments.
"We have what we need in this current fight against omicron, and we've done a lot to prepare for what's ahead," White House coronavirus response chief Jeff Zients said at a news briefing with reporters on Wednesday. "We have boosters for all Americans, we've secured 20 million doses of the highly effective Pfizer pill. We've expanded supplies and stockpiles of PPE, including masks and gloves.
The uncertainty serves to highlight anew the difficulty facing lawmakers and watchdogs alike, as they have struggled to track more than $6 trillion in total emergency spending approved since the beginning of the public health crisis. The figures shared with Congress recently are far more timely and complete than the spending data available to the public, which in turn has made it difficult for experts to assess the country's pandemic readiness.
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