President Joe Biden addressed the nation in a pre-recorded message Thursday morning to mark 1 million deaths from COVID-19 and called for more funding to fight the disease.
The remarks commenced the second Global COVID-19 Summit, a virtual event the United States is co-hosting in which international leaders will discuss ways to handle the disease and prepare for future outbreaks.
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“Today, we mark a tragic milestone in the United States — 1 million COVID deaths,” Biden said. “One million empty chairs around the family dinner table, each irreplaceable losses.”
The president noted that the U.S. has already committed more than $19 billion to help other countries deal with the pandemic, sending 500 million vaccines to 115 countries with a commitment to send 500 million more. He noted that the money and shots had been sent with “no strings attached,” but the president added that there is more that needs to be done.
“Today, we are at a new stage in fighting this pandemic, facing an evolving set of challenges,” he said. “We have to double down on our efforts to get shots in people’s arms, country by country, community by community. … This summit is an opportunity to renew our efforts to continue putting our foot on the gas when it comes to getting this pandemic under control.”
Those next steps, according to Biden’s address, are to share technologies owned by the U.S. government, such as the spike protein used in many vaccines, along with rapid tests. Biden also touted a new initiative at the Washington-based World Bank with $450 million in seed funding and said new vaccines are in development.
The president predicted that another pandemic will happen, saying it’s a question of when rather than if and calling for more money to prepare for it.
He finished by thanking front-line workers who have helped COVID-19 patients for more than two years.
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“Thank you for responding to this fight, and most especially, thank you to all the doctors, nurses, community health workers, scientists, and workers, and anyone and everyone on the front lines fighting this pandemic,” Biden said. “You’re saving lives every single day. We owe you, thank you. God bless you all.”
