On January 20th, Joe Biden became president of the United States. It was also the one-year anniversary of the first known case of the novel coronavirus in the U.S., which was reported in Snohomish County, Washington. “In the year since, COVID-19 has crept into every county in the nation, killing nearly 400,000 people, and infecting 1 in every 14 Americans” reported USA Today.
According to NBC News, “Biden will ask the new Democratic-controlled Congress to approve the “American Rescue Plan.” A chunk of the funds — $416 billion — would help launch a national vaccination program with a goal of vaccinating 50 million Americans and reopening schools in the first 100 days of his administration.
The plan seeks to address a pandemic that continues to worsen. According to NBC News’ Covid-19 data tracker, there have been 384,375 deaths and more than 23 million cases in the U.S…
He claimed that his plan would lift millions of people out of poverty, rebuild American industries, reinvest in first-responders and teachers and keep essential front-line workers on the job.
Billions would also be allotted to help small businesses — including minority-owned establishments — low-income families facing homelessness, rent relief, paid family leave, access to affordable child care and better access to federal nutrition programs for children and families. He called for extending nationwide restrictions on evictions and foreclosures.
‘Just as we are in the midst of a dark winter of this pandemic as cases, hospitalizations and deaths spike at record levels, there is real pain overwhelming the real economy,’ he said. ‘The one where people rely on their paycheck — not their investments — to pay their bills, their meals and their children’s needs.
‘And there is no time to wait,’ he added. ‘We have to act and act now.’
Biden’s offered a two-step plan, he said, to build ‘a better, stronger, more secure America…’
An extra $1 trillion would be allotted to help struggling Americans with the third round of stimulus checks — giving them $1,400 direct payments, as well as an extra $400 a week for unemployed and other affected workers. Biden is also expected to ask Congress to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour to help front-line workers battling the pandemic.”
In two recent polls, global Sermo physicians react to President Biden’s COVID-19 $1.9 trillion relief plan, as well as his goals in health care for his first 100 days in office. In a poll of 640 physicians, 82% say they support Biden’s action for calling on all Americans to wear a mask. While they are split down the middle on the whether Biden’s plan to vaccinate 50 million people in the first 100 days is realistic and promising, 59% say the proposed relief package should speed up the vaccination rollout, 64% support his decision to rejoin the Paris climate accord, and 61% say they support Biden’s agenda to build on the Affordable Care Act.
In another poll of 160+ physicians, 83% believe the prediction of 100,000 more deaths in the U.S. from the coronavirus in just one month is realistic. And 81% agree with the CDC that the new more contagious variant will become the dominant source of infection by March, fueling another surge of cases and deaths. Seventy-one percent believe the majority of their patients will get the covid vaccine when it becomes available to them. And 70% of physicians are encouraged by President Biden’s Covid-19 relief plan.
Below, Sermo physicians from around the world share their professional insights, perspectives, and opinions on this important topic—in their own words:
100,000 more unfortunate lives will be lost in a month to Covid, is very disheartening and disturbing. As the vaccination roll out started at a slow pace, it is possible to see this kind of mortality. Mr. Biden’s promise to vaccinate one million people daily in the next 100 days is a bright light of hope and probably will effect the mortality rate. God bless him.
Cardiology
We should be vaccinated as fast as possible. The J&J one dose vaccine against Covid-19 will be the best way, I believe.
General Practice (GP)
With a more contagious virus, it is assumed that there will be more sick people and more deaths, and the questioned vaccines could be ineffective against the new virus and other possible mutants.
Pediatrics (excluding surgery)
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