The United States still has some 80 million unvaccinated individuals, according to President Joe Biden.
U.S. President Joe Biden made an announcement in a speech at the White House on Thursday. It centered on the new vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 measures in an effort to contain the latest surge.
This comes as hospitals in many states across the country have already reached maximum capacity due to the Delta variant. Alongside the increasing number of hospitalizations, the daily cases and deaths have also risen these past few weeks.
New vaccine mandates for millions of Americans
Joe Biden said that the new COVID-19 measures now require employees at large companies to complete their vaccinations. He stated that he had directed the U.S. Department of Labor to execute the guidance to all private businesses with 100 or more staff. If not, workers should face weekly testing, according to BBC.
Non-compliance to the new vaccine mandate will have repercussions. The U.S. President noted that businesses may face thousands of dollars in fines per violation.
The same requirements also apply to the nearly 17 million healthcare workers receiving federal benefits. As for the 2.5 million government employees, refusing to get the COVID-19 jabs could mean termination. Reports said that the separate federal mandate supersedes the previous order, which allowed federal workers to undergo regular testing instead of vaccination.
Overall, the latest vaccine mandate covers about 100 million Americans. This equates to over two-thirds of the country’s workforce.
The Department of Labor is developing an emergency rule to require that all employers with 100 or more employees ensure their workforces are fully vaccinated or show a negative test at least once a week. pic.twitter.com/Yn2kDf63FU
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 10, 2021
Joe Biden: “This is not about freedom”
Thousands of Americans, “largely unvaccinated,” die every week due to the COVID-19. U.S. President Joe Biden even emphasized that the current crisis in the country is a “pandemic of the unvaccinated.”
He also expressed frustrations as some 80 million individuals have yet to take their respective vaccines. Moreover, he highlighted the politicians who were “actively working to undermine the fight.”
The same publication then stated that the time for sweet-talking is over, adding that the “time for government mandates” has now emerged.
As he unveiled the new measures, Biden claimed that it is “not about freedom” nor “personal choice.” Rather, it is about “protecting yourself and those around you.”
Other measures to tackle the Delta surge
During the same engagement, the U.S. President also announced the other measures to tackle the Delta situation, according to CNN. These include the expansion of free COVID-19 testing as it is “critical to containing the virus,” as per public health officials.
Joe Biden also evoked the Defense Production Act as part of the new guidance. He mentioned, as well, the deployment of healthcare workers to locations with case surges, and the doubling of fines for airline passengers refusing to wear a mask.
Images courtesy of ABC News/YouTube