White House Warns of 'Severe Consequences' After Nancy Pelosi Announced the Removal of COVID Funding on Omnibus Bill | Here's What May Happen
The White House on Wednesday warned about "severe consequences" that may take effect, following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's announcement on the removal of the COVID funding in the Omnibus Bill.
Originally, the White House requested $22.5 billion "for immediate needs to avoid severe disruptions" to the COVID-19 response. However, the Omnibus Bill only granted $15.6 billion, The Hill reported.
The Biden administration mentioned that without the additional COVID funding in the Omnibus Bill, testing capacity will start to decline this month, and potentially months of ramp-up will be required if a new variant will cause another surge.
It can be recalled that White House officials noted that in May, monoclonal antibody treatment will run out, and antiviral pills like Paxlovid will be exhausted in September.
"Simply put, failing to take action now will have severe consequences for the American people," a White House official told The Hill on Wednesday.
Implication of COVID Funding Removal in Omnibus Bill
Aside from issues such as testing capacity, the cancellation of the COVID funding in the Omnibus Bill will also affect the U.S.' global COVID-19 response. The Hill noted that the said funding was supposed to allot $5 billion in vaccinating people from other countries, a move that aims to stop new variants from emerging.
On Tuesday, Senate Majority Chuck Schumer underscored the importance of having the COVID funds included in the Omnibus Bill.
Schumer said that the approval of a new COVID funding bill is about insurance, contending that the COVID aid under the American Rescue Plan has run out, per US News and World Reports.
According to reports, Pelosi said that the House will have a separate vote as early as Wednesday to pass for COVID-19 funding. However, The Hill highlighted that Senate Republicans are set to block the move.
Nancy Pelosi Says it's 'Heartbreaking' to Scrap the COVID-19 Funding in the Omnibus Bill
The warning from the White House came the same day House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that the COVID funding will be removed from the package raised concerns on how the bill paid for the additional funds.
"It is heartbreaking to remove the COVID funding, and we must continue to fight for urgently needed COVID assistance, but unfortunately that will not be included in this bill," Pelosi said in a statement, per PBS News Hour.
Pelosi then blamed Senate Republicans for insisting the White House request for pandemic preparedness be offset, as well as the "state and local funds scheduled to be released this spring," per US News and World Reports.
The Omnibus Bill is a $1.5 trillion legislation anchored on the urgency of helping Ukraine and the bill's spending on other programs, according to PBS News Hour.
Initially, President Joe Biden requested $10 billion in Omnibus bill to be divided among military, humanitarian, and economic aid to Ukraine. However, Congress increased the amount of the funding by $13.6 billion in just days.
Of this amount, $4 billion will be allocated to help Ukraine and other eastern European nations cope with the 2 million refugees. Furthermore, $6.7 billion on the bill will be used for the deployment of U.S. troops and equipment to the region and transfer of American military to Ukraine and other U.S. allies, per PBS News Hour.
Representative Jim McGovern said that the U.S. must stand with the people of Ukraine as they "courageously" stand up for their freedom.
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This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written By: Joshua Summers
WATCH: Congress Moves Forward on $1.5 Trillion 'Mega-Bill' - From PBS NewsHour
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