Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
17 Executive Orders Over 24 Hours: Travel Requirements Top Latest Batch
The Washington Post: Biden To Require Masks On Planes, Buses, Trains And At Airports
President Biden signed an order Thursday mandating masks in airports and on many planes, trains, ships and intercity buses. His action comes on the heels of a Wednesday order — his first as president — requiring masks on federal property. Together, the two orders come as close to a national mask mandate as his federal powers may allow, leaving it to states and municipalities to require residents to wear masks at a local level. (Laris and Wan, 1/21)
AP: Biden's COVID-19 Plan: Masks, Testing, More Vaccine Supplies
A day after being sworn in, President Joe Biden is rolling out a national strategy to fight COVID-19, reopen the nation’s schools and restart the U.S. economy. His plan calls for an expansion of coronavirus testing, accelerated vaccine distribution and new action to prepare for future biological threats. The plan is tied to a $1.9 trillion plan that Biden unveiled last week to combat the pandemic. The administration’s new strategy is based around seven major goals. (1/21)
Bloomberg: Biden Team Vows Tough Enforcement Of Anti-Virus Travel Steps
The Biden administration is vowing tough enforcement of new safety measures it is imposing on travelers to curb the spread of the coronavirus even as some in the travel indusry say elements of the plan will be difficult to police. In an executive order issued Thursday, President Joe Biden required masks be worn in airports, planes, intercity buses and other forms of transportation. The president is also ordering people who arrive in the U.S. from other countries to self-quarantine, which had previously been unenforced guidance. “We are prepared to make sure we use all relevant authorities to enforce the president’s executive order to ensure across every mode of transportation workers, passengers, commuters are protected,” Pete Buttigieg, the nominee to become secretary of transportation, told lawmakers Thursday during a hearing on his confirmation. (Levin and Laing, 1/21)
The Hill: Biden Requires International Travelers To Quarantine Upon Arrival To US
President Biden on Thursday signed an executive order to back up Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines recommending that international travelers quarantine for seven days after arriving in the United States. Biden’s executive order says travelers must comply with CDC orders that require a negative COVID-19 test to get into the country as well as a quarantine period upon arrival to the states. (Lonas, 1/21)
A quick look at President Biden's executive orders —
Politico: Biden Executive Orders: The 17 Things Joe Biden Did On Day One
Joe Biden signed more than a dozen executive orders in his first hours as president on Wednesday, the first salvos in a coming legislative and regulatory crusade to erase Donald Trump’s legacy from federal law and advance his own agenda. While many of Biden’s first policy moves are expected reversals of Trump policies, others go further, and his team has signaled that many more actions will be announced in the days ahead. Here is what Biden did Wednesday, and what it means for the country. (Ollstein, Kakkar and Jin, 1/21)
The New York Times: Here’s What’s In Biden’s Executive Orders Aimed At Covid-19
One order calls on agency leaders to check for shortages in areas like personal protective gear and vaccine supplies, and identify where the administration could invoke the Defense Production Act to increase manufacturing. The White House has said it could use the Korean War-era law, which the Trump administration made use of in its vaccine development program, to increase production of a type of syringe that allows pharmacists to extract an extra dose from vaccine vials. The Biden team has said it identified 12 “immediate supply shortfalls” critical to the pandemic response, including N95 surgical masks and isolation gowns, as well as swabs, reagents and pipettes used in testing. (Weiland, 1/21)
The Washington Post: Biden Executive Order Seeks Stronger Workplace Safety Guidance From OSHA
President Biden signed an executive order Thursday to direct federal regulators to issue stronger safety guidance for workplaces operating in the midst of the pandemic. The executive order on “Protecting Worker Health and Safety” seeks to reorient worker safety guidelines and enforcement at the Labor Department’s workplace safety division — the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (Rosenberg, 1/21)
In other administration action —
Modern Healthcare: HHS Freezes Rule Targeting Community Health Centers' Drug Discounts
The Biden administration on Thursday delayed a rule that would block community health centers from receiving future grant funds unless they charge low-income patients the acquisition price for insulin and Epi-Pens, plus an administration fee. HHS signed off on the rule in December, shortly before former President Donald Trump left office. It aims to lower patients' out-of-pocket costs by forcing community clinics to pass on their 340B drug discounts. The rule requires federally qualified health centers to give their discounts to the uninsured, patients with high cost-sharing for insulin or Epi-Pens or a high unmet deductible. (Brady, 1/21)
