National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness: January 2021
()
About this ebook
Shortly after being inaugurated as the 46th President of the United States, Joe Biden and his administration released this 200 page guide detailing his plans to respond to the coronavirus pandemic. The National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness breaks down seven crucial goals of President Joe Biden's administration with regards to the coronavirus pandemic:
1. Restore trust with the American people.
2. Mount a safe, effective, and comprehensive vaccination campaign.
3. Mitigate spread through expanding masking, testing, data, treatments, health care workforce, and clear public health standards.
4. Immediately expand emergency relief and exercise the Defense Production Act.
5. Safely reopen schools, businesses, and travel while protecting workers.
6. Protect those most at risk and advance equity, including across racial, ethnic and rural/urban lines.
7. Restore U.S. leadership globally and build better preparedness for future threats.
Each of these goals are explained and detailed in the book, with evidence about the current circumstances and how we got here, as well as plans and concrete steps to achieve each goal. Also included is the full text of the many Executive Orders that will be issued by President Biden to achieve each of these goals.
The National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness is required reading for anyone interested in or concerned about the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on American society.
Related to National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness
Related ebooks
Code Red: An Economist Explains How to Revive the Healthcare System without Destroying It Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMedicaid And The Limits of State Health Reform Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Invisible Safety Net: Protecting the Nation's Poor Children and Families Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLegal Rights of the Poor: Foundations of Inclusive and Sustainable Prosperity Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAmerican Cop: Upholding the Constitution and Defending Your Right to Bear Arms Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAbuses and Excuses: How To Hold Bad Nursing Homes Accountable Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTurn Medicaid Nightmares into Miracles: Let's Deal with Medicaid and Protect Your Assets - Now! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow They Got Away With It: White Collar Criminals and the Financial Meltdown Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Your Rights in the Workplace: But Your Boss Was Afraid to Tell You! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCollaborating with Community-Based Organizations Through Consultation and Technical Assistance Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Absolutely Essential Guide to Understanding Elder Financial Abuse Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsObamacare: Complete Law, Latest Statistics & Republican's Counterproposal: Full Text of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act & Summary of the Act, Republicans' Bill, Health Coverage Data and Health Care Spending Statistics, Arguments For & Against Obamacare Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEnforcing the Civil Rights Act Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFIRED!: Protect Your Rights & FIGHT BACK If You're Terminated, Laid Off, Downsized, Restructured, Forced to Resign or Quit Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCommunity College Finance: A Guide for Institutional Leaders Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsClosing the Rights Gap: From Human Rights to Social Transformation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHousing Desegregation and Federal Policy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFoster Care and Best Interests of the Child: Integrating Research, Policy, and Practice Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEmployee assistance program Third Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Border Guide: The Ultimate Guide to Living, Working, and Investing Across the Border Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Medicaid Eligibility Examiner: Passbooks Study Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBroke: How Debt Bankrupts the Middle Class Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHealth Insurance And Health Savings Account Made Easy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRisk Assessment: Origins, Evolution, and Implications for Practice Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEeoc: the Real Deal: (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJust Another Book About Social Media Marketing Strategy - Skip It At Your Own Risk Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Decade of Disruption: America in the New Millennium Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5
Public Policy For You
Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chasing the Scream: The Inspiration for the Feature Film "The United States vs. Billie Holiday" Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Just Mercy: a story of justice and redemption Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bowling Alone: Revised and Updated: The Collapse and Revival of American Community Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Affluent Society Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Diversity Delusion: How Race and Gender Pandering Corrupt the University and Undermine Our Culture Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The People's Hospital: Hope and Peril in American Medicine Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dumbing Us Down - 25th Anniversary Edition: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Capital in the Twenty-First Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Deception: The Great Covid Cover-Up Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTalking to My Daughter About the Economy: or, How Capitalism Works--and How It Fails Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Blow Up a Pipeline: Learning to Fight in a World on Fire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Men without Work: Post-Pandemic Edition (2022) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How We Do Harm: A Doctor Breaks Ranks About Being Sick in America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Price We Pay: What Broke American Health Care--and How to Fix It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5"Trickle Down Theory" and "Tax Cuts for the Rich" Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Project 2025: Blueprint for America's Future Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Project 2025: Exposing the Radical Agenda -The Hidden Dangers of Project 2025 for Everyday Americans Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Abolition of Sex: How the “Transgender” Agenda Harms Women and Girls Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Social Security 101: From Medicare to Spousal Benefits, an Essential Primer on Government Retirement Aid Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Battle for the American Mind: Uprooting a Century of Miseducation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Diary of a Psychosis: How Public Health Disgraced Itself During COVID Mania Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLove Your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contempt Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness - Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
Copyright © Skyhorse Publishing 2021
Copyright claimed in the jacket copy and design.
First Skyhorse Publishing edition 2021. All rights to any and all materials in copyright owned by the publisher are strictly reserved by the publisher. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.
Skyhorse Publishing books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or info@skyhorsepublishing.com.
Skyhorse® and Skyhorse Publishing® are registered trademarks of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.®, a Delaware corporation.
Visit our website at www.skyhorsepublishing.com.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.
ISBN: 978-1-5107-6760-7
eISBN: 978-1-5107-6761-4
Cover design by the United States Federal Government
Printed in the United States of America
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Letter from the President of the United States
Executive Summary
Goal 1: Restore trust with the American people.
Goal 2: Mount a safe, effective, comprehensive vaccination campaign.
Goal 3: Mitigate spread through expanding masking, testing, treatment, data, workforce, and clear public health standards.
Goal 4: Immediately expand emergency relief and exercise the Defense Production Act.
Goal 5: Safely reopen schools, businesses, and travel, while protecting workers.
Goal 6: Protect those most at risk and advance equity, including across racial, ethnic and rural/urban lines.
Goal 7: Restore U.S. leadership globally and build better preparedness for future threats.
Introduction
Goal One: Restore trust with the American people
Goal Two: Mount a safe, effective, equitable vaccination campaign
Goal Three: Mitigate spread through expanding masking, testing, data, treatment, workforce, and clear public health standards
Goal Four: Immediately expand emergency relief and exercise the Defense Production Act
Goal Five: Safely reopen schools, businesses, and travel while protecting workers
Goal Six: Protect those most at risk and advance equity, including across racial, ethnic and rural/urban lines
Goal Seven: Restore U.S. leadership globally, advance health security, and build better preparedness for future threats
Executive Actions
LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
My fellow Americans,
As I swore an oath to God and country to serve as your president, I offered a prayer for the 400,000 Americans and counting who have lost their lives this past year from the once-in-a-century pandemic in our midst. They were mothers and fathers, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, friends, neighbors, and colleagues who leave behind grieving loved ones and a nation on edge.
For the past year, we could not turn to the federal government for a national plan to answer prayers with action — until today. In the following pages, you will find my Administration’s national strategy to beat the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a comprehensive plan that starts with restoring public trust and mounting an aggressive, safe, and effective vaccination campaign. It continues with the steps we know that stop the spread liked expanded masking, testing, and social distancing. It’s a plan where the federal government works with states, cities, Tribal communities, and private industry to increase supply and administer testing and the vaccines that will help reopen schools and businesses safely. Equity will also be central to our strategy so that the communities and people being disproportionately infected and killed by the pandemic receive the care they need and deserve.
Our national strategy will be driven by scientists and public health experts who will regularly speak directly to you, free from political interference as they make decisions strictly on science and public health alone.
Above all, Vice President Harris and I, and our entire Administration, will always be honest and transparent with you about both the good news and the bad. The honest truth is we are still in a dark winter of this pandemic. It will get worse before it gets better. Progress will take time to measure as people getting infected today don’t show up in case counts for weeks, and those who perish from the disease die weeks after exposure. Even as we make progress, we will face setbacks. But I know we can do it, and that a true national strategy will take all of us working together. It will take Congress providing the necessary funding. Families and neighbors will need to continue looking out for one another. We will need health care providers, businesses, civic, religious and civil rights organizations, and unions all rallying together in common purpose and with urgency, purpose, and resolve. We will need to reassert America’s leadership in the world in the fight against this and future public health threats.
There are moments in history when more is asked of us as Americans. We are in that moment now and history will measure whether we were up to a task. Beating this pandemic will be one of the most difficult operational challenges we have ever faced as a nation. I believe we are ready, as fellow Americans and as the United States of America.
May God bless the lost souls of this pandemic, and all of you on the frontlines who define the best of who we are as Americans.
Sincerely,
President Joe Biden
Executive Summary
We can and will beat COVID-19. America deserves a response to the COVID-19 pandemic that is driven by science, data, and public health — not politics. Through the release of the National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness, the United States is initiating a coordinated pandemic response that not only improves the effectiveness of our fight against COVID-19, but also helps restore trust, accountability and a sense of common purpose in our response to the pandemic.
On January 9, 2020, the World Health Organization announced that there were 59 cases of coronavirus-related pneumonia. Just one year later, the United States has experienced over 24 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and over 400,000 COVID-19 deaths. America has just 4% of the world’s population, but 25% of the world’s COVID-19 cases and 20% of all COVID-19 deaths. And our nation continues to experience the darkest days of the pandemic, with record numbers of cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Over 77,000 Americans lost their lives to COVID-19 in December, and across our nation businesses are closing, hospitals are full, and families are saying goodbye to their loved ones remotely.
The National Strategy provides a roadmap to guide America out of the worst public health crisis in a century. It outlines an actionable plan across the federal government to address the COVID-19 pandemic, including twelve initial executive actions issued by President Biden on his first two days in office:
The National Strategy is organized around seven goals:
1. Restore trust with the American people.
2. Mount a safe, effective, and comprehensive vaccination campaign.
3. Mitigate spread through expanding masking, testing, data, treatments, health care workforce, and clear public health standards.
4. Immediately expand emergency relief and exercise the Defense Production Act.
5. Safely reopen schools, businesses, and travel while protecting workers.
6. Protect those most at risk and advance equity, including across racial, ethnic and rural/urban lines.
7. Restore U.S. leadership globally and build better preparedness for future threats.
To execute on the National Strategy, the White House will establish a COVID-19 Response Office responsible for coordinating the pandemic response across all federal departments and agencies. Through implementation of the National Strategy, the United States will make immediate progress on the seven goals. To monitor outcomes, the National Strategy includes the creation of publicly accessible performance dashboards, establishing a data-driven, evidence-based approach to evaluating America’s progress in the fight against COVID-19.
The federal government cannot solve this crisis alone. Full implementation of the National Strategy for COVID-19 will require sustained, coordinated, and complementary efforts of the American people, as well as groups across the country, including State, local, territorial, and Tribal governments; health care providers; businesses; manufacturers critical to the supply chain, communities of color, and unions. It will also require a global effort to contain the virus and advance health security.
America has always risen to the challenge we face and we will do so now. In collaboration with the people of this country, the United States government will lead an effective COVID-19 response that turns this crisis into a crucible, from which our nation will forge a stronger, better, and more equitable future.
GOAL 1
Restore trust with the American people.
The federal government should be the source of truth for the public to get clear, accessible, and scientifically accurate information about COVID-19. To rebuild the trust of the American people, the National Strategy will signal clear public leadership and a commitment to a robust whole-of-government response that puts science first. The federal government will be transparent with the American people, maintaining an open line of communication with the public and all stakeholders. To continue to restore trust, the United States will:
Establish a national COVID-19 response structure where decision-making is driven by science and equity. The Biden-Harris Administration has developed a unified plan to rebuild expert leadership across the government and regain the trust of the American public. As part of the strategy, on his first day in office, President Biden issued Executive Order Organizing and Mobilizing the U.S. Government to Provide a Unified And Effective Response to Combat COVID-19 and to Provide United States Leadership on Global Health and Security establishing a White House COVID-19 national response structure to coordinate across the U.S. Government and restoring the White House Directorate on Global Health Security and Biodefense established by the Obama-Biden Administration. The COVID-19 Response office will establish clear lines of communications with all governors, state public health officials and immunization managers, and local leaders.
Conduct regular expert-led, science-based public briefings. The federal government will conduct regular, expert-led, science-based public briefings and release regular reports on the state of the pandemic. Experts and scientists at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will also develop clear, evidence-based, metric-driven public health guidance and effectively and frequently communicate and distribute guidance and updates to the American people.
Publicly share data around key response indicators. Metrics and metric-driven public health guidance will be essential to controlling the pandemic. President Biden issued Executive Order Ensuring a Data-Driven Response to COVID-19 and Future High Consequence Public Health Threats directing steps to enhance federal agencies’ collection, production sharing, and analysis of, and collaboration with respect to, data to support an equitable COVID-19 response and recovery. As further detailed in National Strategy Goals Two, Three, and Six, the federal government will track a range of performance measures and data including cases, testing, vaccinations, and hospital admissions, and will make real-time information readily available to the public and to policymakers at the federal, state, and local level. The CDC will also maintain a public dashboard tracking COVID-19 cases at the county level, so that Americans can gauge the level of transmission in their own communities to make their own informed choices.
Engage the American people. The federal government cannot solve this crisis alone. It will take regular engagement with the public, state and local leaders, the private sector, unions, community volunteers, and health care providers to guide policy and implementation. The Administration will prioritize outreach to state and local governments, the public and private sectors, vulnerable communities, students, workers, and community leaders, using input from these stakeholders to drive the government’s COVID-19 response.
Lead science-first public health campaigns. The Administration will lead world-class public education campaigns — covering topics like masking, testing, vaccinations and vaccine hesitancy — designed with diversity and inclusivity in mind, including communications in multiple languages, to maximize reach and effectiveness. The campaigns will be coordinated, across national, state, and local levels, and engage with the private and public sector. They will be anchored by science and fact-based public health guidance. The Administration will work to counter misinformation and disinformation by ensuring that Americans are obtaining science-based information.
GOAL 2
Mount a safe, effective, comprehensive vaccination campaign.
The United States will spare no effort to ensure Americans can get vaccinated quickly, effectively, and equitably. The federal government will execute an aggressive vaccination strategy, focusing on the immediate actions necessary to convert vaccines into vaccinations, including improving allocation, distribution, administration, and tracking. Central to this effort will be additional support and funding for state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments — and improved line of sight into supply — to ensure that they are best prepared to mount local vaccination programs. At the same time, the federal government will mount an unprecedented public campaign that builds trust around vaccination and communicates the importance of maintaining public health measures such as masking, physical distancing, testing, and contact tracing even as people receive safe and effective vaccinations. To mount a safe, effective, comprehensive vaccination campaign, the United States will:
Ensure the availability of safe, effective vaccines for the American public. The national vaccination effort will be one of the greatest operational challenges America has ever faced. To ensure all Americans can be vaccinated quickly, the President has developed a plan for expanding vaccine manufacturing and purchasing COVID-19 vaccine doses for the U.S. population by fully leveraging contract authorities, including the Defense Production Act; deploying onsite support to monitor contract manufacturing operations; and purchasing additional FDA-authorized vaccines to deliver as quickly as possible. The effort includes prioritizing supplies that could cause bottlenecks, including glass vials, stoppers, syringes, needles, and the fill and finish
capacity to package vaccine into vials.
Accelerate getting shots into arms and get vaccines to the communities that need them most. The success of the national vaccination effort will depend on reaching communities across the United States. To achieve this, the federal government will take a series of steps to simplify and strengthen the allocation and distribution process. In order to expand the supply available to states, the Administration will end the policy of holding back significant levels of doses, instead holding back a small reserve and monitoring supply to ensure that everyone receives the full regimen as recommended by the FDA. The United States will accelerate the pace of vaccinations by encouraging states and localities to move through the priority groups more quickly — expanding access to frontline essential workers and individuals over the age of 65, while staying laser-focused on working to ensure that the highest-risk members of the public, including those in congregate facilities, can access the vaccine where and when they need it. The Administration will also improve the allocation process by providing states and localities with clear, consistent projections to inform their planning. Through it all, the United States will work to ensure that the vaccine is distributed quickly, effectively and equitably, with a focus on making sure that high-risk and hard-to-reach communities are not left behind.
Create as many