In related news, the WHO -- despite recently expressing concern about a possible surge of Mpox cases this summer, today declared and end the global health emergency for the virus.
TeeRoy's 2 Cents:
- The Trump administration declared the public health emergency on January 31st, 2020.
- Let's face it, the emergency has been over for most Americans for a while.
- We can thank the effectiveness of vaccines for this.
Today officially marks the end of the COVID public health emergency in the United States, after more than three years and 1.1 million deaths.
The declaration comes about a week after the World Health Organization announced that COVID is no longer a global health emergency. However, the CDC is making it very clear that just because it is no longer considered a public health emergency, COVID has not gone away and is still killing about 1,000 Americans each week. Also, new variants of the virus continue to appear and people are still being hospitalized.
With the end of the public emergency, there are some things that will change regarding the COVID response. Home tests will still be available for free at COVIDtests.gov, but the government is buying fewer of them which means the supply may be limited. Also, private insurance companies are no longer required to pay for eight home tests a month. The cost of vaccines is going up to as much as $100 a dose, however insurance companies will still cover the cost with no co-pay. (USA Today)
In related news, the WHO -- despite recently expressing concern about a possible surge of Mpox cases this summer, today declared and end the global health emergency for the virus. (NBC News)