- The Trump administration is trying to cut funds to boost coronavirus testing of a new relief bill, The Washington Post reported.
- The White House is also reportedly seeking to exclude funds for measures to combat the pandemic at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Pentagon and the State Department.
- Trump has falsely claimed that increased evidence is the reason infection rates are increasing in the United States, but public health experts say the evidence measures a real increase in cases.
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The Trump administration seeks to eliminate $ 25 billion in funds for coronavirus testing from a new Republican bill, The Washington Post reported.
According to the report citing sources close to the negotiations on the bill, the White House is also seeking to change the bill to eliminate $ 10 billion in funding for initiatives at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Pentagon and the State Department to combat the pandemic.
Later, sources confirmed the report to The New York Times and CNN.
The new bill designed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will provide billions in aid funds for struggling businesses as the coronavirus continues to sweep across the southern and western states.
The United States has been the country most affected by the pandemic. Data from Johns Hopkins University show that 70,000 new cases are recorded per day and that the disease has killed 140,000 people.
“Cases and deaths are now increasing again, even in many red states,” Sam Hammond, a policy expert with the Niskanen Center’s expert group, told the Post. “Senate Republicans have called for funds to help states buy test kits in bulk. Currently, the main bottleneck for a large increase in testing is less technical than the White House’s own intransigence.”
Cases declined for several weeks amid widespread blocking measures, but have skyrocketed again in several states where, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci of the White House coronavirus task force, the blockade was lifted prematurely.
But President Trump has refused to accept that the cases continue to rise, insisting that the increase in new cases is the result of additional tests being carried out by the authorities.
The White House has also been highly critical of CDC’s performance. According to the Washington Post, it also believes that some of the billions previously allocated for monitoring and testing remain unspent.
Public health officials say the data is tracking a real increase in the number of cases in the community, and that the only way to effectively monitor and combat the pandemic is through widespread testing.
Trump said at a June rally that he had ordered fewer tests to be done as he continues to push for the economy to rebound again before the November presidential election.
In a statement to the Post, Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential campaign criticized the attempt to cut trial funding as cases continue to rise.
“Donald Trump is turning his back on his most important responsibility to the American people because, in the words of his own advisers, ‘he does not want to be distracted by’ the worst public health crisis in 100 years,” the Biden campaign spokesman said. Andrew Bates.
