When asked about a new study suggesting that the negative effects of lockdowns far outweigh any positives, White House press secretary Jen Psaki responded that most of America’s lockdowns occurred during the Trump administration.
The study is a Johns Hopkins meta analysis of lockdowns that found that they are not an effective way of reducing mortality during a pandemic but do cause tremendous societal harm.
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“[The study] suggests that lockdowns shouldn’t be a part of a future pandemic response,” a reporter asked Psaki on Friday. “Is that the shared view of the administration?”
Lockdowns were never part of the Biden administration’s plan for combating COVID-19, Psaki responded.
“Most of the lockdowns actually happened under the previous president,” she said. “What our objective has been is conveying that we have the tools we need to keep our country open.”
Psaki did not answer directly when asked if she agreed lockdowns caused more harm than good but reiterated that President Joe Biden is not promoting them.
While lockdowns have fallen out of favor in the United States, they remain widespread in places such as China, which is currently hosting the Winter Olympics. Other restrictions, such as mask mandates, are also increasingly facing scrutiny in the U.S. as the science used to justify them comes into question.
The fate of the remaining restrictions is hotly debated, with many jurisdictions dropping them and others keeping them in place. The federal mask mandate for public transit expires March 18, though it has been extended twice.
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But the calls to remain at home and only venture out for groceries and other essential tasks seem likely to remain a 2020 memory. Psaki pointed out that 90% of schools are open and that more than 210 million Americans are vaccinated.
“We have the tools to avoid lockdowns, and we’re not moving back,” she said. “That’s our intention at this point.”
