In September of 2021, President Joe Biden released a six-piece action plan to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic once and for all. The plan includes economic, medical, and other policies meant to protect the nation and ease post-pandemic recovery. 

The beginning step of this comprehensive plan is to vaccinate the unvaccinated. According to The White House, this step will be enforced through “regulatory powers and other actions… these requirements will become dominant in the workplace.” President Biden adds that the plan will ensure that workers receiving the vaccine will get paid time off. 

The President has already implemented vaccine mandates for federal employees and encouraged employers to do the same for their businesses. In his plan, he cites the Tyson Foods and United Airlines vaccine mandates, in which both businesses saw a notable rise in vaccination rates after setting their deadlines. He states that federal, state, and corporate efforts have resulted in almost 175 million Americans receiving full doses and hopes that by doubling down on regulations, the vaccination rate will increase. 

The next part of President Biden’s strategy is to further protect the vaccinated. This is through the authorization and release of a second COVID-19 booster vaccine. President Biden writes that the booster, “Promises to give Americans their highest level of protection yet,” and writes that three-shot vaccinations are common and offer “some of the most durable and robust protection.” He states that this booster is well-researched and backed by prominent medical officials such as Dr. Anthony Fauci and Surgeon General Vivek Murphy. 

The third part is keeping schools open. President Biden states that keeping schools safe and open has been a priority among his administration, with THINGS such as the American Rescue Plan providing schools with $130 billion to reopen, promote student academic growth, and implement CDC restrictions. President Biden once more encourages vaccination as the most secure line of defense against the virus in schools and for children too young to be vaccinated, the plan recommends masking indoors and social distancing. 

The fourth step is to increase testing and masking. President Biden states that to slow the spread of COVID-19 among those who are unvaccinated or newly vaccinated, identifying people with the virus and ensuring that mask mandates remain in place is key. The plan will take actions to increase testing availability and strengthen the enforcement of masking. 

The fifth piece is to protect economic recovery. President Biden acknowledged the economic downturn following the worst point of the pandemic, but states that his administration has fostered historic job growth and overall economic growth. To continue this growth, President Biden has announced that he will be implementing reforms such as the Paycheck Protection Program and support for small businesses. 

The final part of President Biden’s strategy is improving care for those with COVID-19. He states that the reduction of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths is paramount, but that treating those currently infected with the virus and helping hard hit healthcare systems is just as important. His administration will accomplish this by continuing to transport Surge Response Teams to struggling communities, assisting with local outbreak investigations, and setting up more, free testing sites. 

Caption: President Biden seeks to return the nation to normal with a six step plan that includes vaccination, economic recovery, and stricter COVID-19 guidelines.