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Covid-19: Biden says won’t order ‘national shutdown’ despite surge in cases
“There’s no circumstance which I can see that would require total national shutdown. I think that would be counterproductive,” Biden, who takes office on January 20, told reporters, according to news agency AFP.
United States President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday said he would not order a nationwide shutdown to combat the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic despite a surge in cases.
“There’s no circumstance which I can see that would require total national shutdown. I think that would be counterproductive,” Biden, who takes office on January 20, told reporters, according to news agency AFP.
The United States continues to be the worst hit country from the Covid-19 pandemic. According to Worldometer figures, 12,017,723 people have been infected whereas over 250,000 have died so far. New York has the maximum number of deaths due to the disease followed by Texas, California and Florida.
Biden on Wednesday highlighted that a range of information had not been made available to his campaign, including the distribution plan for coronavirus vaccines.
Also Read: CDC recommends Americans don’t travel for Thanksgiving to limit spread of Covid
On Thursday, Democratic senator Chris Murphy said that officials from President Donald Trump’s vaccine distribution effort have not briefed anyone on Biden’s transition team and have no plans to do so.
“Just off a conference call with Trump Administration vaccine distribution team. They confirmed that they have not briefed anyone on President-elect Biden’s team and have no plans to do so. This is potentially catastrophic,” Murphy tweeted.
Meanwhile, The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended citizens to not travel during the Thanksgiving holiday to curb the spread of coronavirus.
The travel recommendation is a “strong recommendation,” not a requirement, a CDC official said. Thanksgiving along with Christmas is the busiest time for domestic travel across the country.
(With agency inputs)
