Biden to end covid health emergencies on May 11

[Celerity]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/30/biden-end-covid-health-emergencies-may-11/

https://archive.is/O55tN



President Biden informed Congress on Monday that he will end the national emergencies to combat the covid outbreak on May 11, a move that will restructure the federal government’s response to the pandemic nearly three years after the virus first arrived in the United States.

The declaration came as Biden opposed House Republicans’ efforts to end the emergency declarations immediately, a move the White House argued would cause chaos and confuse efforts for an orderly wind-down of the emergency status.

In 2020, the Trump administration declared both a national emergency and a public health emergency, which are set to expire on March 1 and April 11, respectively. In a notice to Congress on Monday, the White House said it wants to briefly extend both emergency declarations before terminating them May 11.

Administration officials had previously said they would give 60 days’ notice before ending the public health emergency. The federal government has renewed the public health emergency every 90 days since it was first declared.

snip

[global1]

1. What Exactly Will Be Ending?....

I understand that May 11 will be the end of covid health emergencies - but what exactly does that mean? What do we have going now with respect to covid health emergencies and what will not be available after May 11?

[Celerity]

2. the article discusses that nt

[AkFemDem]

3. Unfortunately, a lot...

“Millions of people have received free COVID-19 testing and testing-related services, certain treatments, and vaccines during the § 319 PHE, but not all of these items will continue to be free when the PHE ends.
For people without insurance, there will no longer be a pathway through Medicaid for free COVID-19 testing, vaccines, or treatment.

For Medicare beneficiaries, cost sharing requirements will apply for at-home tests, testing-related services, and all COVID-19 treatments when the § 319 PHE ends. Coverage of COVID-19 vaccines will continue at no cost due to statutory changes made by the CARES Act that added coverage of COVID-19 vaccines to Medicare Part B. Clinical diagnostic testing is also covered at no cost.

Based on changes in the CAA 2023, Medicare Part D plans are allowed to cover oral antivirals authorized for use by the FDA under an EUA, and when the US government-purchased supply of oral antivirals is depleted, or if Part D enrollees receive oral antivirals that are not obtained from the federally-purchased supply, Medicare Part D enrollees are expected to face varying cost sharing amounts for these treatments, since cost sharing varies across Part D plans.

For Medicaid and CHIP enrollees, coverage of COVID-19 vaccines will continue as a mandatory benefit for both children and adults.

Once the coverage period mandated by ARPA ends, treatments that have FDA approval will be covered, but could be subject to cost sharing. However, coverage of treatments that are still under emergency use authorization (EUA) and do not have FDA approval will vary by state.

States will continue to cover COVID-19 tests that are ordered by a physician and provided in an office or similar setting. Coverage of tests provided without a physician’s order, including at-home tests, will vary by state.

Privately insured individuals could incur additional out-of-pocket costs for tests and related services when the § 319 PHE ends.

The vast majority of people with private insurance will continue to have coverage of COVID-19 vaccines at no cost from in-network providers, due to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and statutory changes made by the CARES Act.

People with private insurance who receive COVID-19 vaccines, including booster doses, from out-of-network providers could incur out-of-pocket costs when the federally purchased supply of vaccines is depleted.

Because there is no federal law specifically addressing how COVID-19 treatment should be covered by private insurance, there would be no change with the end of the § 319 PHE.”


More implications here: https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/what-happens-when-covid-19-emergency-declarations-end-implications-for-coverage-costs-and-access/

[Lucinda]

4. Thank you for the info!

❤️ ✿❧🌿❧✿ ❤️

[Celerity]

12. thank you for this additional info!

[Lucinda]

5. Thank you for the info!

❤️ ✿❧🌿❧✿ ❤️

[yaesu]

6. I just saw a WHO update today, in the last 8 days 170,000 people died of covid worldwide

Last edited Mon Jan 30, 2023, 11:19 PM - Edit history (1)

And 500 are dying a day in the Us. Death rates are still climbing in some countries.

[liberal_mama]

7. I am sickened by this! Thousands of Americans are dying of Covid every week

I am so disgusted with these people. They all like to play make believe while people are losing family members and suffering.

How much will Paxlovid cost without this?

[liberal_mama]

8. Dr. Reiner thinks this is going to be real bad

What will the vaxxed and relaxed people do when they get infected and can't get Paxlovid anymore? A lot of people will be dead without it.

Link to tweet

[WhiskeyGrinder]

9. From the AP: "Once the emergency expires, people with private insurance will have some out-of-pocket

costs for vaccines, tests and treatment, while the uninsured will have to pay for those expenses in their entirety."

Moderna just raised its prices.

https://apnews.com/article/biden-united-states-government-district-of-columbia-covid-public-health-2a80b547f6d55706a6986debc343b9fe

[Celerity]

11. The long game was always for the private sector to make rapacious profits. It is just par for

the course in the American for-profit healthcare wealth transfer/wealth extraction scheme.

The rest of the advanced world is just gobsmacked that the vast majority of Americans just accept the 'anti-human life' nature of it all.