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Plan, Prepare & Make the Best Career Choices

2 Minute Speech on Covid-19 (CoronaVirus) for Students

The year, 2019, saw the discovery of a previously unknown coronavirus illness, Covid-19 . The Coronavirus has affected the way we go about our everyday lives. This pandemic has devastated millions of people, either unwell or passed away due to the sickness. The most common symptoms of this viral illness include a high temperature, a cough, bone pain, and difficulties with the respiratory system. In addition to these symptoms, patients infected with the coronavirus may also feel weariness, a sore throat, muscular discomfort, and a loss of taste or smell.

2 Minute Speech on Covid-19 (CoronaVirus) for Students

10 Lines Speech on Covid-19 for Students

The Coronavirus is a member of a family of viruses that may infect their hosts exceptionally quickly.

Humans created the Coronavirus in the city of Wuhan in China, where it first appeared.

The first confirmed case of the Coronavirus was found in India in January in the year 2020.

Protecting ourselves against the coronavirus is essential by covering our mouths and noses when we cough or sneeze to prevent the infection from spreading.

We must constantly wash our hands with antibacterial soap and face masks to protect ourselves.

To ensure our safety, the government has ordered the whole nation's closure to halt the virus's spread.

The Coronavirus forced all our classes to be taken online, as schools and institutions were shut down.

Due to the coronavirus, everyone was instructed to stay indoors throughout the lockdown.

During this period, I spent a lot of time playing games with family members.

Even though the cases of COVID-19 are a lot less now, we should still take precautions.

Short 2-Minute Speech on Covid 19 for Students

The coronavirus, also known as Covid - 19 , causes a severe illness. Those who are exposed to it become sick in their lungs. A brand-new virus is having a devastating effect throughout the globe. It's being passed from person to person via social interaction.

The first instance of Covid - 19 was discovered in December 2019 in Wuhan, China . The World Health Organization proclaimed the covid - 19 pandemic in March 2020. It has now reached every country in the globe. Droplets produced by an infected person's cough or sneeze might infect those nearby.

The severity of Covid-19 symptoms varies widely. Symptoms aren't always present. The typical symptoms are high temperatures, a dry cough, and difficulty breathing. Covid - 19 individuals also exhibit other symptoms such as weakness, a sore throat, muscular soreness, and a diminished sense of smell and taste.

Vaccination has been produced by many countries but the effectiveness of them is different for every individual. The only treatment then is to avoid contracting in the first place. We can accomplish that by following these protocols—

Put on a mask to hide your face. Use soap and hand sanitiser often to keep germs at bay.

Keep a distance of 5 to 6 feet at all times.

Never put your fingers in your mouth or nose.

Long 2-Minute Speech on Covid 19 for Students

As students, it's important for us to understand the gravity of the situation regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact it has on our communities and the world at large. In this speech, I will discuss the real-world examples of the effects of the pandemic and its impact on various aspects of our lives.

Impact on Economy | The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the global economy. We have seen how businesses have been forced to close their doors, leading to widespread job loss and economic hardship. Many individuals and families have been struggling to make ends meet, and this has led to a rise in poverty and inequality.

Impact on Healthcare Systems | The pandemic has also put a strain on healthcare systems around the world. Hospitals have been overwhelmed with patients, and healthcare workers have been stretched to their limits. This has highlighted the importance of investing in healthcare systems and ensuring that they are prepared for future crises.

Impact on Education | The pandemic has also affected the education system, with schools and universities being closed around the world. This has led to a shift towards online learning and the use of technology to continue education remotely. However, it has also highlighted the digital divide, with many students from low-income backgrounds facing difficulties in accessing online learning.

Impact on Mental Health | The pandemic has not only affected our physical health but also our mental health. We have seen how the isolation and uncertainty caused by the pandemic have led to an increase in stress, anxiety, and depression. It's important that we take care of our mental health and support each other during this difficult time.

Real-life Story of a Student

John is a high school student who was determined to succeed despite the struggles brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.

John's school closed down in the early days of the pandemic, and he quickly found himself struggling to adjust to online learning. Without the structure and support of in-person classes, John found it difficult to stay focused and motivated. He also faced challenges at home, as his parents were both essential workers and were often not available to help him with his schoolwork.

Despite these struggles, John refused to let the pandemic defeat him. He made a schedule for himself, to stay on top of his assignments and set goals for himself. He also reached out to his teachers for additional support, and they were more than happy to help.

John also found ways to stay connected with his classmates and friends, even though they were physically apart. They formed a study group and would meet regularly over Zoom to discuss their assignments and provide each other with support.

Thanks to his hard work and determination, John was able to maintain good grades and even improved in some subjects. He graduated high school on time, and was even accepted into his first-choice college.

John's story is a testament to the resilience and determination of students everywhere. Despite the challenges brought on by the pandemic, he was able to succeed and achieve his goals. He shows us that with hard work, determination, and support, we can overcome even the toughest of obstacles.

Explore Career Options (By Industry)

  • Construction
  • Entertainment
  • Manufacturing
  • Information Technology

Data Administrator

Database professionals use software to store and organise data such as financial information, and customer shipping records. Individuals who opt for a career as data administrators ensure that data is available for users and secured from unauthorised sales. DB administrators may work in various types of industries. It may involve computer systems design, service firms, insurance companies, banks and hospitals.

Bio Medical Engineer

The field of biomedical engineering opens up a universe of expert chances. An Individual in the biomedical engineering career path work in the field of engineering as well as medicine, in order to find out solutions to common problems of the two fields. The biomedical engineering job opportunities are to collaborate with doctors and researchers to develop medical systems, equipment, or devices that can solve clinical problems. Here we will be discussing jobs after biomedical engineering, how to get a job in biomedical engineering, biomedical engineering scope, and salary. 

Ethical Hacker

A career as ethical hacker involves various challenges and provides lucrative opportunities in the digital era where every giant business and startup owns its cyberspace on the world wide web. Individuals in the ethical hacker career path try to find the vulnerabilities in the cyber system to get its authority. If he or she succeeds in it then he or she gets its illegal authority. Individuals in the ethical hacker career path then steal information or delete the file that could affect the business, functioning, or services of the organization.

GIS officer work on various GIS software to conduct a study and gather spatial and non-spatial information. GIS experts update the GIS data and maintain it. The databases include aerial or satellite imagery, latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates, and manually digitized images of maps. In a career as GIS expert, one is responsible for creating online and mobile maps.

Data Analyst

The invention of the database has given fresh breath to the people involved in the data analytics career path. Analysis refers to splitting up a whole into its individual components for individual analysis. Data analysis is a method through which raw data are processed and transformed into information that would be beneficial for user strategic thinking.

Data are collected and examined to respond to questions, evaluate hypotheses or contradict theories. It is a tool for analyzing, transforming, modeling, and arranging data with useful knowledge, to assist in decision-making and methods, encompassing various strategies, and is used in different fields of business, research, and social science.

Geothermal Engineer

Individuals who opt for a career as geothermal engineers are the professionals involved in the processing of geothermal energy. The responsibilities of geothermal engineers may vary depending on the workplace location. Those who work in fields design facilities to process and distribute geothermal energy. They oversee the functioning of machinery used in the field.

Database Architect

If you are intrigued by the programming world and are interested in developing communications networks then a career as database architect may be a good option for you. Data architect roles and responsibilities include building design models for data communication networks. Wide Area Networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), and intranets are included in the database networks. It is expected that database architects will have in-depth knowledge of a company's business to develop a network to fulfil the requirements of the organisation. Stay tuned as we look at the larger picture and give you more information on what is db architecture, why you should pursue database architecture, what to expect from such a degree and what your job opportunities will be after graduation. Here, we will be discussing how to become a data architect. Students can visit NIT Trichy , IIT Kharagpur , JMI New Delhi . 

Remote Sensing Technician

Individuals who opt for a career as a remote sensing technician possess unique personalities. Remote sensing analysts seem to be rational human beings, they are strong, independent, persistent, sincere, realistic and resourceful. Some of them are analytical as well, which means they are intelligent, introspective and inquisitive. 

Remote sensing scientists use remote sensing technology to support scientists in fields such as community planning, flight planning or the management of natural resources. Analysing data collected from aircraft, satellites or ground-based platforms using statistical analysis software, image analysis software or Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a significant part of their work. Do you want to learn how to become remote sensing technician? There's no need to be concerned; we've devised a simple remote sensing technician career path for you. Scroll through the pages and read.

Budget Analyst

Budget analysis, in a nutshell, entails thoroughly analyzing the details of a financial budget. The budget analysis aims to better understand and manage revenue. Budget analysts assist in the achievement of financial targets, the preservation of profitability, and the pursuit of long-term growth for a business. Budget analysts generally have a bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, economics, or a closely related field. Knowledge of Financial Management is of prime importance in this career.

Underwriter

An underwriter is a person who assesses and evaluates the risk of insurance in his or her field like mortgage, loan, health policy, investment, and so on and so forth. The underwriter career path does involve risks as analysing the risks means finding out if there is a way for the insurance underwriter jobs to recover the money from its clients. If the risk turns out to be too much for the company then in the future it is an underwriter who will be held accountable for it. Therefore, one must carry out his or her job with a lot of attention and diligence.

Finance Executive

Product manager.

A Product Manager is a professional responsible for product planning and marketing. He or she manages the product throughout the Product Life Cycle, gathering and prioritising the product. A product manager job description includes defining the product vision and working closely with team members of other departments to deliver winning products.  

Operations Manager

Individuals in the operations manager jobs are responsible for ensuring the efficiency of each department to acquire its optimal goal. They plan the use of resources and distribution of materials. The operations manager's job description includes managing budgets, negotiating contracts, and performing administrative tasks.

Stock Analyst

Individuals who opt for a career as a stock analyst examine the company's investments makes decisions and keep track of financial securities. The nature of such investments will differ from one business to the next. Individuals in the stock analyst career use data mining to forecast a company's profits and revenues, advise clients on whether to buy or sell, participate in seminars, and discussing financial matters with executives and evaluate annual reports.

A Researcher is a professional who is responsible for collecting data and information by reviewing the literature and conducting experiments and surveys. He or she uses various methodological processes to provide accurate data and information that is utilised by academicians and other industry professionals. Here, we will discuss what is a researcher, the researcher's salary, types of researchers.

Welding Engineer

Welding Engineer Job Description: A Welding Engineer work involves managing welding projects and supervising welding teams. He or she is responsible for reviewing welding procedures, processes and documentation. A career as Welding Engineer involves conducting failure analyses and causes on welding issues. 

Transportation Planner

A career as Transportation Planner requires technical application of science and technology in engineering, particularly the concepts, equipment and technologies involved in the production of products and services. In fields like land use, infrastructure review, ecological standards and street design, he or she considers issues of health, environment and performance. A Transportation Planner assigns resources for implementing and designing programmes. He or she is responsible for assessing needs, preparing plans and forecasts and compliance with regulations.

Environmental Engineer

Individuals who opt for a career as an environmental engineer are construction professionals who utilise the skills and knowledge of biology, soil science, chemistry and the concept of engineering to design and develop projects that serve as solutions to various environmental problems. 

Safety Manager

A Safety Manager is a professional responsible for employee’s safety at work. He or she plans, implements and oversees the company’s employee safety. A Safety Manager ensures compliance and adherence to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) guidelines.

Conservation Architect

A Conservation Architect is a professional responsible for conserving and restoring buildings or monuments having a historic value. He or she applies techniques to document and stabilise the object’s state without any further damage. A Conservation Architect restores the monuments and heritage buildings to bring them back to their original state.

Structural Engineer

A Structural Engineer designs buildings, bridges, and other related structures. He or she analyzes the structures and makes sure the structures are strong enough to be used by the people. A career as a Structural Engineer requires working in the construction process. It comes under the civil engineering discipline. A Structure Engineer creates structural models with the help of computer-aided design software. 

Highway Engineer

Highway Engineer Job Description:  A Highway Engineer is a civil engineer who specialises in planning and building thousands of miles of roads that support connectivity and allow transportation across the country. He or she ensures that traffic management schemes are effectively planned concerning economic sustainability and successful implementation.

Field Surveyor

Are you searching for a Field Surveyor Job Description? A Field Surveyor is a professional responsible for conducting field surveys for various places or geographical conditions. He or she collects the required data and information as per the instructions given by senior officials. 

Orthotist and Prosthetist

Orthotists and Prosthetists are professionals who provide aid to patients with disabilities. They fix them to artificial limbs (prosthetics) and help them to regain stability. There are times when people lose their limbs in an accident. In some other occasions, they are born without a limb or orthopaedic impairment. Orthotists and prosthetists play a crucial role in their lives with fixing them to assistive devices and provide mobility.

Pathologist

A career in pathology in India is filled with several responsibilities as it is a medical branch and affects human lives. The demand for pathologists has been increasing over the past few years as people are getting more aware of different diseases. Not only that, but an increase in population and lifestyle changes have also contributed to the increase in a pathologist’s demand. The pathology careers provide an extremely huge number of opportunities and if you want to be a part of the medical field you can consider being a pathologist. If you want to know more about a career in pathology in India then continue reading this article.

Veterinary Doctor

Speech therapist, gynaecologist.

Gynaecology can be defined as the study of the female body. The job outlook for gynaecology is excellent since there is evergreen demand for one because of their responsibility of dealing with not only women’s health but also fertility and pregnancy issues. Although most women prefer to have a women obstetrician gynaecologist as their doctor, men also explore a career as a gynaecologist and there are ample amounts of male doctors in the field who are gynaecologists and aid women during delivery and childbirth. 

Audiologist

The audiologist career involves audiology professionals who are responsible to treat hearing loss and proactively preventing the relevant damage. Individuals who opt for a career as an audiologist use various testing strategies with the aim to determine if someone has a normal sensitivity to sounds or not. After the identification of hearing loss, a hearing doctor is required to determine which sections of the hearing are affected, to what extent they are affected, and where the wound causing the hearing loss is found. As soon as the hearing loss is identified, the patients are provided with recommendations for interventions and rehabilitation such as hearing aids, cochlear implants, and appropriate medical referrals. While audiology is a branch of science that studies and researches hearing, balance, and related disorders.

An oncologist is a specialised doctor responsible for providing medical care to patients diagnosed with cancer. He or she uses several therapies to control the cancer and its effect on the human body such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation therapy and biopsy. An oncologist designs a treatment plan based on a pathology report after diagnosing the type of cancer and where it is spreading inside the body.

Are you searching for an ‘Anatomist job description’? An Anatomist is a research professional who applies the laws of biological science to determine the ability of bodies of various living organisms including animals and humans to regenerate the damaged or destroyed organs. If you want to know what does an anatomist do, then read the entire article, where we will answer all your questions.

For an individual who opts for a career as an actor, the primary responsibility is to completely speak to the character he or she is playing and to persuade the crowd that the character is genuine by connecting with them and bringing them into the story. This applies to significant roles and littler parts, as all roles join to make an effective creation. Here in this article, we will discuss how to become an actor in India, actor exams, actor salary in India, and actor jobs. 

Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats create and direct original routines for themselves, in addition to developing interpretations of existing routines. The work of circus acrobats can be seen in a variety of performance settings, including circus, reality shows, sports events like the Olympics, movies and commercials. Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats must be prepared to face rejections and intermittent periods of work. The creativity of acrobats may extend to other aspects of the performance. For example, acrobats in the circus may work with gym trainers, celebrities or collaborate with other professionals to enhance such performance elements as costume and or maybe at the teaching end of the career.

Video Game Designer

Career as a video game designer is filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. A video game designer is someone who is involved in the process of creating a game from day one. He or she is responsible for fulfilling duties like designing the character of the game, the several levels involved, plot, art and similar other elements. Individuals who opt for a career as a video game designer may also write the codes for the game using different programming languages.

Depending on the video game designer job description and experience they may also have to lead a team and do the early testing of the game in order to suggest changes and find loopholes.

Radio Jockey

Radio Jockey is an exciting, promising career and a great challenge for music lovers. If you are really interested in a career as radio jockey, then it is very important for an RJ to have an automatic, fun, and friendly personality. If you want to get a job done in this field, a strong command of the language and a good voice are always good things. Apart from this, in order to be a good radio jockey, you will also listen to good radio jockeys so that you can understand their style and later make your own by practicing.

A career as radio jockey has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. If you want to know more about a career as radio jockey, and how to become a radio jockey then continue reading the article.

Choreographer

The word “choreography" actually comes from Greek words that mean “dance writing." Individuals who opt for a career as a choreographer create and direct original dances, in addition to developing interpretations of existing dances. A Choreographer dances and utilises his or her creativity in other aspects of dance performance. For example, he or she may work with the music director to select music or collaborate with other famous choreographers to enhance such performance elements as lighting, costume and set design.

Social Media Manager

A career as social media manager involves implementing the company’s or brand’s marketing plan across all social media channels. Social media managers help in building or improving a brand’s or a company’s website traffic, build brand awareness, create and implement marketing and brand strategy. Social media managers are key to important social communication as well.

Photographer

Photography is considered both a science and an art, an artistic means of expression in which the camera replaces the pen. In a career as a photographer, an individual is hired to capture the moments of public and private events, such as press conferences or weddings, or may also work inside a studio, where people go to get their picture clicked. Photography is divided into many streams each generating numerous career opportunities in photography. With the boom in advertising, media, and the fashion industry, photography has emerged as a lucrative and thrilling career option for many Indian youths.

An individual who is pursuing a career as a producer is responsible for managing the business aspects of production. They are involved in each aspect of production from its inception to deception. Famous movie producers review the script, recommend changes and visualise the story. 

They are responsible for overseeing the finance involved in the project and distributing the film for broadcasting on various platforms. A career as a producer is quite fulfilling as well as exhaustive in terms of playing different roles in order for a production to be successful. Famous movie producers are responsible for hiring creative and technical personnel on contract basis.

Copy Writer

In a career as a copywriter, one has to consult with the client and understand the brief well. A career as a copywriter has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. Several new mediums of advertising are opening therefore making it a lucrative career choice. Students can pursue various copywriter courses such as Journalism , Advertising , Marketing Management . Here, we have discussed how to become a freelance copywriter, copywriter career path, how to become a copywriter in India, and copywriting career outlook. 

In a career as a vlogger, one generally works for himself or herself. However, once an individual has gained viewership there are several brands and companies that approach them for paid collaboration. It is one of those fields where an individual can earn well while following his or her passion. 

Ever since internet costs got reduced the viewership for these types of content has increased on a large scale. Therefore, a career as a vlogger has a lot to offer. If you want to know more about the Vlogger eligibility, roles and responsibilities then continue reading the article. 

For publishing books, newspapers, magazines and digital material, editorial and commercial strategies are set by publishers. Individuals in publishing career paths make choices about the markets their businesses will reach and the type of content that their audience will be served. Individuals in book publisher careers collaborate with editorial staff, designers, authors, and freelance contributors who develop and manage the creation of content.

Careers in journalism are filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. One cannot afford to miss out on the details. As it is the small details that provide insights into a story. Depending on those insights a journalist goes about writing a news article. A journalism career can be stressful at times but if you are someone who is passionate about it then it is the right choice for you. If you want to know more about the media field and journalist career then continue reading this article.

Individuals in the editor career path is an unsung hero of the news industry who polishes the language of the news stories provided by stringers, reporters, copywriters and content writers and also news agencies. Individuals who opt for a career as an editor make it more persuasive, concise and clear for readers. In this article, we will discuss the details of the editor's career path such as how to become an editor in India, editor salary in India and editor skills and qualities.

Individuals who opt for a career as a reporter may often be at work on national holidays and festivities. He or she pitches various story ideas and covers news stories in risky situations. Students can pursue a BMC (Bachelor of Mass Communication) , B.M.M. (Bachelor of Mass Media) , or  MAJMC (MA in Journalism and Mass Communication) to become a reporter. While we sit at home reporters travel to locations to collect information that carries a news value.  

Corporate Executive

Are you searching for a Corporate Executive job description? A Corporate Executive role comes with administrative duties. He or she provides support to the leadership of the organisation. A Corporate Executive fulfils the business purpose and ensures its financial stability. In this article, we are going to discuss how to become corporate executive.

Multimedia Specialist

A multimedia specialist is a media professional who creates, audio, videos, graphic image files, computer animations for multimedia applications. He or she is responsible for planning, producing, and maintaining websites and applications. 

Quality Controller

A quality controller plays a crucial role in an organisation. He or she is responsible for performing quality checks on manufactured products. He or she identifies the defects in a product and rejects the product. 

A quality controller records detailed information about products with defects and sends it to the supervisor or plant manager to take necessary actions to improve the production process.

Production Manager

A QA Lead is in charge of the QA Team. The role of QA Lead comes with the responsibility of assessing services and products in order to determine that he or she meets the quality standards. He or she develops, implements and manages test plans. 

Process Development Engineer

The Process Development Engineers design, implement, manufacture, mine, and other production systems using technical knowledge and expertise in the industry. They use computer modeling software to test technologies and machinery. An individual who is opting career as Process Development Engineer is responsible for developing cost-effective and efficient processes. They also monitor the production process and ensure it functions smoothly and efficiently.

AWS Solution Architect

An AWS Solution Architect is someone who specializes in developing and implementing cloud computing systems. He or she has a good understanding of the various aspects of cloud computing and can confidently deploy and manage their systems. He or she troubleshoots the issues and evaluates the risk from the third party. 

Azure Administrator

An Azure Administrator is a professional responsible for implementing, monitoring, and maintaining Azure Solutions. He or she manages cloud infrastructure service instances and various cloud servers as well as sets up public and private cloud systems. 

Computer Programmer

Careers in computer programming primarily refer to the systematic act of writing code and moreover include wider computer science areas. The word 'programmer' or 'coder' has entered into practice with the growing number of newly self-taught tech enthusiasts. Computer programming careers involve the use of designs created by software developers and engineers and transforming them into commands that can be implemented by computers. These commands result in regular usage of social media sites, word-processing applications and browsers.

Information Security Manager

Individuals in the information security manager career path involves in overseeing and controlling all aspects of computer security. The IT security manager job description includes planning and carrying out security measures to protect the business data and information from corruption, theft, unauthorised access, and deliberate attack 

ITSM Manager

Automation test engineer.

An Automation Test Engineer job involves executing automated test scripts. He or she identifies the project’s problems and troubleshoots them. The role involves documenting the defect using management tools. He or she works with the application team in order to resolve any issues arising during the testing process. 

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English Summary

2 Minute Speech On Covid-19 In English

Good morning everyone present, today I am going to talk about Coronavirus, often referred to as COVID-19, which is an infectious infection that affects the human respiratory system. Covid 19 refers to a novel coronavirus disease that was discovered in 2019. Our daily lives have been impacted by the Coronavirus. Millions of individuals have been impacted by this pandemic, and are either sick or dead due to the disease.

Fever, cold, cough, bone pain, and respiratory issues are the most typical signs of this viral infection. Patients with the coronavirus may also experience symptoms like fatigue, a sore throat, muscle soreness, and a loss of taste or smell in addition to these ones.

Around the world, the pandemic has caused significant social and economic disruption, including the biggest global recession since the Great Depression. Supply chain instability led to widespread shortages of supplies, particularly food supplies. Pollution fell by an unprecedented amount as human activity decreased. Throughout 2020 and 2021, many jurisdictions closed all or part of their educational institutions and public spaces, and numerous events were postponed or canceled. Political tensions have increased as a result of false information spreading through social media and the media. The pandemic has brought up questions of racial and geographic discrimination, health fairness, and how to strike a balance between the needs of public health and the rights of individuals. Thank you.

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The novel coronavirus, first detected at the end of 2019, has caused a global pandemic.

The Coronavirus Crisis

Watch: president biden delivers emotional remembrance of 500,000 covid-19 victims.

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Scott Detrow

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

President Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff hold a moment of silence and candlelight ceremony in honor of those who have lost their lives to the coronavirus. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

President Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff hold a moment of silence and candlelight ceremony in honor of those who have lost their lives to the coronavirus.

Updated at 6:45 p.m. ET

President Biden and Vice President Harris acknowledged a grim milestone Monday: the deaths of more than 500,000 Americans from COVID-19.

Biden and Harris, along with first lady Jill Biden and second gentleman Doug Emhoff, emerged from the White House at sundown. They stood at the foot of the South Portico, covered in 500 candles honoring the dead, and listened to a Marine Corps band play "Amazing Grace" as they held a moment of silence.

Before the brief ceremony, Biden spoke, emotionally and somberly, from the White House. As he often does in moments of tragedy, Biden spoke directly to people who have lost friends and family members. "I know all too well," Biden said, "that black hole in your chest. You feel like you're being sucked into it. The survivor's remorse. The anger. The questions of faith in your soul."

Watch Biden's remarks here:

Biden's first wife and first daughter were killed in a car crash shortly before he was sworn in as a U.S. senator. His son Beau died from brain cancer when Biden was vice president.

While President Donald Trump repeatedly downplayed and sought to minimize the COVID-19 pandemic, Biden is pushing Americans to acknowledge and directly confront the enormity of the loss that the country has experienced over the past year, even if that action brings pain.

"We have to resist viewing each life as a statistic or a blur," he said Monday, in the second ceremony he has held to honor people killed in the ongoing pandemic.

"To heal, we must remember. It's hard, sometimes, to remember," Biden said on the eve of his inauguration in a similar ceremony at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. At that time, the U.S. had just marked 400,000 COVID-19 deaths. Remembering, he said, is "how we heal. It's important to do that as a nation."

Biden echoed that sentiment Monday, emphasizing his own experience of loss. "I know it's hard. I promise you," he said, "I remember."

Watch the ceremony here:

Biden acknowledged how each family touched by death during the pandemic has experienced a personal level of pain. "The birthdays, the anniversaries, the holidays without them. And the everyday things — the small things, the tiny things — that you miss the most: that scent when you open the closet, that park that you go by that you used to stroll in. That movie theater where you met. That morning coffee that you shared together."

Remarkably, Biden's inauguration-eve ceremony was the country's first national collective moment of mourning during a pandemic that has upended life around the world, has thrown the economy into a recession and, at this moment, has now killed a half-million people in the United States.

On Monday, ahead of the latest grim milestone, Biden ordered flags on federal property to be flown at half-staff for five days.

'To Me He's Not A Number': Families Reflect As U.S. Passes 500,000 COVID-19 Deaths

'To Me He's Not A Number': Families Reflect As U.S. Passes 500,000 COVID-19 Deaths

'A Loss To The Whole Society': U.S. COVID-19 Death Toll Reaches 500,000

Shots - Health News

'a loss to the whole society': u.s. covid-19 death toll reaches 500,000.

As grim of a marker as a half-million dead — more, Biden said Monday, than the American soldiers killed in both world wars and the Vietnam War combined — it comes at a time of comparative hope: New coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths are all declining. The vaccination of millions of Americans — as well as the federal government's purchase of hundreds of millions of additional vaccine doses — has pointed to an endpoint that could come sooner, rather than later. But experts caution that the progress is fragile .

Still, the equivalent of a large American city's population has now died from a disease outbreak that has lasted a bit more than a year. And no matter how quickly the U.S. achieves herd immunity through vaccination and people who have recovered from a coronavirus infection, there is no doubt that many thousands more will die.

"I promise you," Biden said Monday night, as he often does when delivering eulogies and marking deaths, "the day will come when the memory of the loved one you lost will bring a smile to your lips before a tear to your eye. It will come, I promise you."

Jan 21, 2021

Joe Biden Speech on COVID-19 Response Transcript January 21

Joe Biden Speech on COVID-19 Response Transcript January 21

President Joe Biden gave remarks on his administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic on January 21. Read the transcript of his speech here.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

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speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

President Joe Biden: ( 00:00 ) Before I begin today’s announcement, let me take a few moments to thank all the law enforcement folks for all they did, the military personnel, from all across the Federal State and local agencies to secure yesterday’s inaugural activities. And a special thanks to the members of the National Guard from around the country. It was an unprecedented situation.

President Joe Biden: ( 00:23 ) Hopefully, never have to be renewed again. And everyone with the most professionalism and duty and honor that could be expected. As president, as Commander In Chief, I always respect and Revere their service and that of their families. But now to today’s announcement, Vice-President Harris and I were joined by members of our COVID-19 team, response team, and Dr. Tony Fauci, our Chief COVID medical adviser.

President Joe Biden: ( 00:53 ) Xavier Becerra, excuse me, our nominee for Secretary Of Health And Human Services. Dr. Vivek Murthy, our nominee for Surgeon General. Dr. Rochelle Willinsky, she’s going to be the director for the Centers For Disease Control Prevention. And Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, who will be leading our equity work and the COVID response. And Jeff Zients and Natalie Quillian, who are managing this whole effort.

President Joe Biden: ( 01:22 ) Yesterday, during my inaugural address, I offered as salient prayer, and silent prayer, it was both salient and silent. I thought it was important that people understand what had happened, that we all pay tribute to the… Our prayers for those 400,000 Americans who’ve lost their lives in this pandemic. On Tuesday, Jill and I, Kamala and Doug, we stood at the Reflecting Pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial and joined Americans all across the country to remember those 400,000 moms and dads, husbands, and wives, children, sons, daughters.

President Joe Biden: ( 02:00 ) And I said at that moment, that, “To heal, we must remember.” To heal, we must remember. It’s important to do that as a nation. We must also act though, not just remember. Yet for the past a year, we couldn’t rely on the Federal Government to act with the urgency and focus, and coordination we needed.

President Joe Biden: ( 02:21 ) And we have seen the tragic cost of that failure. Three to 4,000 deaths per day. To date, more than 24 million Americans, 24 million Americans have been infected. To put that in context, America makes up 4% of the world’s population, but 25% of the world’s confirmed COVID-19 cases, and nearly 20% of all the COVID 19 deaths, when we have 4% of the world’s population. The pandemic has disproportionately impacted on blacks, Latinos, and Native Americans who are about four times as likely to be hospitalized, and nearly three times more likely to die from the COVID-19 pandemic than white Americans.

President Joe Biden: ( 03:09 ) Hospitals are out of beds. Businesses are closed for good. Schools are caught in between. And while the vaccine provides so much hope, the rollout has been a dismal failure thus far. So I understand the despair and frustration of so many Americans, and how they’re feeling. I understand why many governors, mayors, county officials, tribal leaders feel like they’re left on their own without a clear national plan to get them through the crisis.

President Joe Biden: ( 03:39 ) Let me be very clear. Things are going to continue to get worse before they get better. The Memorial we held two nights ago will not be our last one, unfortunately. The death toll will likely top 500,000 next month. The cases will continue to mount. We didn’t get into this mess overnight. That’s going to take months for us to turn things around. But let me be equally clear, we will get through this.

President Joe Biden: ( 04:08 ) We will defeat this pandemic. And to a nation waiting for action let me be the clearest on this point, help is on the way. Today, I am unveiling a national strategy on COVID-19, and executive actions to beat this pandemic. This plan reflects the ideas I set forward during the campaign and further refined over the past three months. It consists of my transitions teams, the taskforce, Tony Fauci, and the team here today, and other experts put this plan together.

President Joe Biden: ( 04:45 ) Our national strategy is comprehensive. It’s based on science, not politics. It’s based on truth, not denial. And it’s detailed. You can review this entire plan, this entire plan by going to WhiteHouse.gov. It is so detailed, it’s 198 pages. And complete detail, what we’re going to do. Our plan starts with mounting an aggressive, safe, and effective vaccination campaign to meet our goal of administering 100 million shots, in our first 100 days in office, we’re on day one.

President Joe Biden: ( 05:26 ) This will be one of the greatest operational challenges our nation has ever undertaken, and I’m committed to getting it done. We’re committed to getting it done. And as I explained last week, we’ll move heaven and earth to get more people vaccinated for free, and create more places for them to get vaccinated, to mobilize more medical teams to get shots in people’s arms, and to increase vaccine supply, and get it out the door as fast as possible. Yesterday, we got started.

President Joe Biden: ( 05:57 ) We directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, to start standing up the first federally supported community vaccination centers with the goal of standing up 100 centers within the next month. The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention will launch the federal Pharmacy Program to make vaccines available to communities and their local pharmacies, beginning early within, I think it’s by the seventh or eighth, February. In very early February.

President Joe Biden: ( 06:27 ) We’ll also task the Department Of Health and Human Services to prepare and expand the pool of medical professionals who can administer the vaccine. Who can administer the vaccine. And to ensure we have enough vaccinators, the people doing the vaccines, to meet the nation’s needs and quickly. In addition to this effort, our administration, will be asking Congress for the funds to grow the public health workforce.

President Joe Biden: ( 06:58 ) We also, are going to take immediate steps to partner with governors, mayors, and other local officials, who we’ve been talking to all along, who are on the front lines of this fight. We directed FEMA to establish a COVID response liaison for each state. Which means every state will have a point person at the federal level to maximize cooperation between the Federal Government and the States. And where it falls short, to be made known about it immediately.

President Joe Biden: ( 07:28 ) This is a model we use to respond to Hurricane Sandy, which I was deeply involved with. And in just a few moments, I’m going to sign a declaration to immediately begin reimbursing States 100% for the use of their National Guards to help COVID relief efforts. Something Democrats and Republicans governors alike have called for. But the brutal truth is, it’s going to take eight months before we can get the majority of Americans vaccinated.

President Joe Biden: ( 08:00 ) So while we increase vaccinations, we’re going to take steps necessary now to slow the spread of the disease as well. One of our 100 day challenges is asking the American people to mask up for the first 100 days, the next 99 days. But masks can become a partisan issue, unfortunately.

President Joe Biden: ( 08:24 ) But it’s a patriotic act. But for a few months to wear a mask, no vaccines, the fact is that they’re the single best thing we can do. They’re even more important than the vaccines because they take time to work. And if we do this as Americans, the experts say by wearing a mask from now until April, we’d save more than 50,000 lives going forward; 50,000 lives.

President Joe Biden: ( 08:51 ) So I’m asking every American to mask up for the next hundred days. Yesterday, I signed an executive action that requires mask and social distancing on federal property. Today we’ll be signing an additional executive action to extend masking requirements on interstate travel, like on trains, planes, and buses. And, in light of the new COVID variance that you’re learning about, we’re instituting now a new measure for individuals flying into the United States from other countries.

President Joe Biden: ( 09:27 ) In addition to wearing masks, everyone flying to the United States from another country will need to test before they get on that plane, before they depart, and quarantine when they arrive in America.

President Joe Biden: ( 09:41 ) Our national plan launches a full scale war time effort to address the supply shortages by ramping up production and protective equipment, syringes, needles, you name it. And when I say war time, people kind of look at me like, “War time?” Well, as I said, last night, 400,000 Americans have died. That’s more than have died in all of World War II; 400,000. This is a war time undertaking.

President Joe Biden: ( 10:12 ) Today, I’m signing an executive action to use the Defense Production Act and all other available authorities to direct all federal agencies, and private industry to accelerate the making of everything that’s needs to protect, test, vaccinate and take care of our people. We’ve already identified suppliers and we’re working with them on to move the plan forward.

President Joe Biden: ( 10:35 ) Look, our strategy includes a plan to safely reopen schools and businesses while protecting our workers. Today, we’re directing the Department Of Education and the Department Of Health And Human Services to immediately provide schools and communities with clear guidance and resources to safely reopen the schools and childcare centers.

President Joe Biden: ( 11:01 ) And by the way, when you do that, think of all the people that can get back to work, be able to get back to work; all the mothers and single fathers that are staying home, taking care of their children. We’re going to put the full force of the federal government behind expanding testing by launching a COVID-19 pandemic testing board. This effort will ensure that we get testing to where it is needed and where it’s needed most; helping schools and businesses reopened safely.

President Joe Biden: ( 11:30 ) And protecting the most vulnerable by those who live in long-term care facilities. And for the millions of workers, many of whom are people of color, immigrants and low wage workers, who continue to put their lives on the line to keep this country going through the pandemic. I’m calling for the enforcement of a more stringent worker safety standards so that you are better protected from this virus while you have to continue to work, to protect the rest of us.

President Joe Biden: ( 11:58 ) Our plan also protects those most at risk, and works for everyone, of all races and urban, rural communities alike. Today, I’m formalizing the Health Equity Task Force that we announced in the transition led by the brilliant Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith. Who ensures that it’s going to ensure that equality is at the core of every decision we make.

President Joe Biden: ( 12:23 ) That includes addressing vaccine hesitancy and building trust in communities. As well as fighting disinformation campaigns that are already underway. Above all, our plan is to restore public trust. We will make sure that scientists and public health experts will speak directly to you. That’s why you’re going to hear a lot more from Dr. Fauci again.

President Joe Biden: ( 12:48 ) Not from the president, but from the real genuine experts and scientists. We’re going to make sure they work free from political interference. That they make decisions strictly based on science and healthcare alone. Science and health alone, not what the political consequences are. The Vice President Harris and I, and our entire administration will always be honest and transparent with you about both the good news, the bad. We will level with you, when we make a mistake.

President Joe Biden: ( 13:20 ) We’ll straight up say what happened. And I said at the outset, the honest truth is we’re still in a dark winter of this pandemic. It’s going to get worse before it gets better. It’s going to take many months to get where we need to be. Progress [inaudible 00:13:38] our plan will take time to measure as people getting infected today, they don’t show up as case counts for weeks.

President Joe Biden: ( 13:45 ) And those who perished from this disease die weeks after their exposure, despite the best intentions. We’re going to face setbacks, which I will always explain to you. But also know, we can do this if we come together. That’s why, ultimately our plan is based on unity and all of us acting as one nation. It requires families and neighbors looking out for one another.

President Joe Biden: ( 14:16 ) Healthcare providers and business, and civic, and religious, and civil rights organizations, and unions all relying together on a common purpose. With urgency and purpose, and resolve. It requires reasserting our global leadership. Which is why I took an action yesterday for the United States to rejoin the World Health Organization. And to reestablish, our Global Pandemic Office, and the National Security Council.

President Joe Biden: ( 14:45 ) It requires Congress coming together to provide the necessary funding, in the COVID relief package and the American Rescue Plan that I will soon be sending to the Congress. I know these bold practical steps will not come cheaply, but failing to do so will cost us so much more dearly. I look forward to working with members of both parties in the Congress. We’re in a national emergency and it’s time we treat it like one. Together, and the national plan, as the United States of America.

President Joe Biden: ( 15:19 ) As I said yesterday at my inaugural address, there are moments in history when more is asked of a particular generation, more asked of us as Americans than other times, we are in that moment now. History is going to measure whether we’re up to the task. I believe we are. The American people have given so much already, but I believe they’re ready to set big goals and pursue them with courage, conviction, and honesty because the health of the nation is literally at stake. It’s not hyperbole.

President Joe Biden: ( 15:54 ) I’m convinced the American people are ready as well to spare no effort, no expense to get this done. What could be more important? The more people we vaccinate, and the faster we do it, the sooner we can put this pandemic behind us, and the sooner we can build our economy back and build it back better. And get back to our lives and to our loved ones. We can do this. We can do this if we stand together as fellow Americans, and as the United States of America.

President Joe Biden: ( 16:27 ) So God bless those lost souls in this pandemic and their families, all they left behind. May God bless all of you on the front lines, when defined the best of who we are as Americans. Thank you very much. Now, I’m going to go over to this desk and sign these executive actions. But again, this is the plan. This is the plan. You can go online and get it. I know it’s a lot of heavy reading, but it’s all laid out in stark detail here.

President Joe Biden: ( 16:55 ) Thank you.

President Joe Biden: ( 17:11 ) This executive order I’m signing is [inaudible 00:17:14] in supply chain. This next one is keeping workers safe and how to do that.

Speaker 2: ( 17:47 ) [inaudible 00:17:42].

President Joe Biden: ( 17:49 ) This next one is ensuring equitable response. I guess I should take this out this way. The pens are going to pop on you. Can you give me a hand here?

Speaker 3: ( 18:09 ) Sure can.

President Joe Biden: ( 18:09 ) There you go. This next one is when I referenced about traveling to America, this is the promoting safe travel. This next on is setting up the pandemic testing board. Thank you.

Speaker 3: ( 18:27 ) My pleasure.

President Joe Biden: ( 18:40 ) This next one is studying the safe schools initiative. This next one is dictating the COVID data that has to be maintained and recorded. Next one is making sure that the National Guard and FEMA support is available. This next one relates to expanding access to care and treatment for COVID-19. And the last one is our global response directive.

Speaker 3: ( 20:19 ) [crosstalk 00:20:37].

Speaker 4: ( 20:19 ) Mr.President, you said you set the goal at 100 million vaccines in the [crosstalk 00:20:43] is that high enough? Shouldn’t you set the bar higher? That’s basically where the US is right now.

President Joe Biden: ( 20:47 ) When I announced it, you all said, “It’s not possible.” Come on, give me a break man. It’s a good start. 100 million. Thank you.

Speaker 5: ( 21:01 ) Come on you guys [crosstalk 00:20:53]. Let’s go. [crosstalk 00:20:54]. Come on you guys, let’s go. [crosstalk 00:20:55]. Let’s go. Thank you guys. Thank you guys.

Speaker 6: ( 21:10 ) Thank you very much.

Speaker 5: ( 21:11 ) Thank you.

Speaker 6: ( 21:11 ) [crosstalk 00:21:08].

Speaker 5: ( 21:11 ) Okay. Come on, let’s go. [crosstalk 00:21:11] let’s go. Thank you. Come on guys.

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speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

President Biden Delivers Remarks on COVID-19 Response

President Biden delivered remarks on the COVID-19 vaccination efforts nationwide. He spoke about vaccinating children 12-years-old and up an… read more

President Biden delivered remarks on the COVID-19 vaccination efforts nationwide. He spoke about vaccinating children 12-years-old and up and reaching vaccine-hesitant adults. He also addressed fuel shortages due to the cyberattack against Colonial Pipeline, saying there should be good news soon and conveyed that the administration was doing what it can to transport gasoline to needed areas. close

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President Biden Remarks on COVID-19 Response and Vaccine Program

President Biden Remarks on COVID-19 Response and Vaccine Program

President Biden delivered remarks on the administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the percentage of…

President Biden Remarks on COVID-19 Pandemic Response

President Biden Remarks on COVID-19 Pandemic Response

President Biden spoke about his administration’s ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the U.S. had made “s…

President Biden on COVID-19 Vaccinations

President Biden on COVID-19 Vaccinations

President Biden delivered remarks on the state of the COVID-19 pandemic as the U.S. reached 200 million vaccinations. Th…

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speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

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Free Speech on Campus: COVID-19 and Beyond

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​February 11 & February 25, 2021 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM ET

Free speech is central to democracies and part of the lifeblood of college and university communities. Knight Foundation research shows that student attitudes about and experiences of free speech were changing even before the disruptions of COVID-19, the racial justice movement, and the 2020 presidential election. These two webinars explore how these changes are shaping free speech on campus and how leaders should respond in relationship to efforts to increase inclusion and the growing role of communications technologies.​

February 11, 2021 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM ET

Amid political turmoil, hyperpolarization, and social distancing, supporting students’ free speech rights while also cultivating an inclusive campus culture is more difficult than ever. In a survey from Knight Foundation and Gallup, 81 percent of students say they want to be exposed to all kinds of speech on campus, but 69 percent also believe inclusion is essential. Women and minority students have far less faith that the First Amendment protects them, even as they embrace their free speech rights to lead a new generation of civil right activism.

In this webinar, leaders promoting and supporting free speech and civic engagement on campuses will discuss how to make sense of these tensions to embrace both free speech and inclusion in the present environment.

​​​View the webinar recording below. 

Evette Alexander - Director, Learning and Impact, Knight Foundation -

February 25, 2021 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM ET

Already a central channel for speech within campus communities, social media and other forms of digital communications have become the primary means through which students and faculty seek information, debate issues, and organize for action during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students, particularly those who are BIPOC or LGBTQ, are increasingly the target of online bullying and misinformation campaigns. But these same students are embracing technology to advance social justice on an unprecedented scale. This webinar will explore how colleges and universities can safeguard students’ free speech in digital forums while also combatting deception and extreme polarization, encouraging inclusion and democratic deliberation.

View the webinar recording below. 

Jonathan Alexander - Associate Dean, Division of Undergraduate Education, and Chancellor's Professor of English and Informatics, University of California, Irvine -

​This event is generously sponsored by the Knight Foundation .

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

View the Recordings

Free speech and inclusion in higher education, campus free speech and technology, ​learn more.

Prepare for the events by reading these documents.

The First Amendment on Campus 2020 Report: College Students’ Views of Free Expression

To the Point: Campus Inclusion and Freedom of Expression: Managing Social Media (PDF) 

Inclusion and Free Speech: Strategic for Managing Tensions

Inclusion and Free Speech: The Right to be Heard

Free Speech in the US and on College Campuses Today

Conversations: Free Speech and Expression

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College Admissions in 2024: "A Year Like No Other"

The pandemic cost 7 million lives, but talks to prevent a repeat stall

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

In late 2021, as the world reeled from the arrival of the highly contagious omicron variant of the coronavirus , representatives of almost 200 countries met — some online, some in-person in Geneva — hoping to forestall a future worldwide outbreak by developing the first-ever global pandemic accord.

The deadline for a deal? May 2024.

The costs of not reaching one? Incalculable, experts say. An unknown future pathogen could have far more devastating consequences than SARS-CoV-2, which cost some 7 million lives and trillions of dollars in economic losses.

But even as negotiators pack in extra hours, the goal of clinching a legally binding pact by next month is far from certain — despite a new draft document being delivered in recent days. The main sticking point involves access to vital information about new threats that may emerge — and to the vaccines and medicines that could contain that threat.

“It’s the most momentous time in global health security since 1948,” when the World Health Organization was established, said Lawrence O. Gostin, director of the WHO Collaborating Center for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University.

The backdrop to today’s negotiations is starkly different from the years after World War II when countries united around principles guaranteeing universal human rights and protecting public health. The unifying fear of covid has been replaced by worries about repeating the injustices that tainted the response to the pandemic, deepening rifts between the Global North and the Global South.

“The trauma of the covid-19 pandemic has seeped into the negotiations,” said Ellen 't Hoen, a lawyer and public health advocate who specializes in intellectual property policies. Representatives of the WHO’s 194 member countries, she said, are looking backward rather than forward.

The reasons are clear. A paper published in October 2022 in the journal Nature showed that by the end of 2021, nearly 50 percent of the global population had received two doses of coronavirus vaccine but that huge disparities existed between high-income countries, where coverage was close to 75 percent, and many low-income countries, where less than 2 percent of the population had received two doses. At the same time, South Africa, where the omicron variant was identified, felt punished by travel bans instead of being praised for its scientists’ epidemiological acumen and openness.

“We felt like we were beggars when it came to vaccine availability,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa recalled at a global financial summit in 2023. “We felt like life in the Northern Hemisphere is much more important than life in the Global South.”

The United States has signaled its support for a legally binding agreement, including leveraging its purchasing power to expand access to medicines around the world. But the United States, like many European Union countries, is the object of mistrust because it is the seat of the powerful pharmaceutical industry, which is reluctant to relax control over manufacturing know-how.

The chief point of contention involves pathogen access and benefit sharing. In many ways, the story of the fraught pandemic accord negotiations is the story of Henrietta Lacks — the African American patient whose cancer cells were used in research for years without her family’s knowledge — retold on a global stage. Who gets to use — and profit from — samples and scientific information, which often come from disadvantaged groups?

High-income countries want guarantees that samples and genetic data about any new pathogen will be quickly shared to allow for the development of tests, vaccines and treatments. Developing nations, where pathogens such as AIDS, Ebola and MERS emerged in recent decades, want guarantees of benefits, such as equal access to vaccines and collaboration with local scientists.

Almost 20 years ago, the Indonesian government forced those contrasting priorities to the forefront by refusing to share bird flu samples. WHO member states responded by creating the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework , or PIP, under which key manufacturers agree to supply 10 percent of flu vaccines they make to the WHO for distribution.

No such agreement exists for other pathogens with pandemic potential.

“The PIP Framework provides us with good guidance for what an access and benefits sharing instrument could look like, but there are areas where the pandemic agreement could improve,” said Alexandra L. Phelan, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, who co-authored a piece in the journal Nature in February calling for a “science-for-science mechanism” to ensure vaccine equity in the next pandemic.

A new agreement, Phelan said, could include an obligation to share genetic sequence data and factor in public health risks when determining how medical products are shared during an emergency. Unlike in earlier outbreaks, no need exists today to wait for a pathogen sample to arrive by mail in a test tube; work on vaccines and treatments can begin based on genetic sequencing attached to an email.

Even as negotiators wrestle over those points, the venture is being roiled by misinformation on social media, including hostility toward the WHO and assertions that any international agreement would threaten the sovereignty of nations — claims that WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has condemned as “utterly, completely, categorically false.” The final agreement, Tedros said in early April, won’t give the WHO power to impose lockdowns or mask mandates in individual countries.

Underlying it all is “a lack of trust,” said 't Hoen, who, like Phelan, is one of the outside experts approved by member states to provide input to the negotiations although they do not take part in the closed-door talks. Some describe lingering in the cafeteria, waiting for the opportunity to glean information or offer counsel to country representatives when they emerge in need of refreshment.

“This is a pretty nontransparent process,” said Phelan, with “a lot of grumpy and unhappy people.”

The stymied talks prompted former British prime minister Gordon Brown, who serves as WHO ambassador for global health financing, to write a letter in March to the 194 WHO member states urging them to collaborate for the common good. The letter was signed by many former presidents and prime ministers, along with experts in global health and finance.

But signing on is less politically palatable for current political leaders now that so many people have moved on from the pandemic, choosing to ignore the not-if-but-when warnings that public health officials are airing again today, just as they did before the novel coronavirus was identified more than four years ago in China.

“The global leadership is absent,” said Nina Schwalbe, principal of the global health think tank Spark Street Advisors, another expert approved to provide input to the negotiations.

And in many ways, the coronavirus has left the world more vulnerable, Schwalbe and others argue, amid increased resistance to vaccination and other preventive measures and the weariness of public health officials. In some U.S. states, officials’ powers have been curtailed by legislatures.

Meanwhile, climate change and increased interactions between human and animal populations are increasing the possibility of spillover events spawning zoonotic diseases that are all but impossible to contain given the speed of modern travel.

Efforts to study pathogens present their own risk, with laboratories around the world engaged in medical and military research aimed at increasing the virulence of existing bacteria and viruses through “gain-of-function” research, posing a threat of accidental or deliberate release.

And in March, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released a paper outlining a new peril: Advances in gene editing and synthetic biology make it possible to revive pathogens including the virus that causes deadly and disfiguring smallpox — the only human disease declared to have been eradicated following a vaccine campaign by epidemiologists nearly half a century ago.

“New technologies could enable nefarious actors to genetically engineer the smallpox virus from scratch or make it even more lethal,” said Gostin, who chaired the committee that produced the National Academies report. “The potential for a laboratory leak or intentional release of smallpox or other pox viruses is real.”

Nature is also making a show of strength.

Since the beginning of 2023, the Democratic Republic of Congo has reported more than 12,000 cases of mpox resulting in 581 deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , and there have been more than 700 cases this year in the United States. Bird flu has been identified in dairy cows in several U.S. states, with one dairy worker being treated for symptoms. A new JN.1 strain of the coronavirus is circulating.

When the ninth and supposedly final round of talks on the global pandemic accord closed in late March with no agreement, Tedros declared overtime, setting a date in late April for negotiations to resume. The WHO director general has portrayed the pandemic agreement as an urgent generational opportunity, only the second such global health accord, following the 2003 Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which used new taxation and labeling and advertising rules to target smoking.

Asked in early April whether a deal could still be struck, Tedros sounded cautious. “I believe it can happen,” he said. In mid-April, the policy nonprofit Health Policy Watch published a new bare-bones draft agreement that is being sent to member states. It maintains support for equity, while leaving key details to be hashed out during the next two years, by which time the leadership of many instrumental countries, including the United States, may have changed. Meetings are set to resume April 29.

Some experts have speculated that the original timeline was too short to unite 194 countries around such a divisive and complex topic, pointing out that many treaties take years to finalize and that this process has been complicated by concurrent negotiations over the International Health Regulations, which aim to prevent the spread of disease. The Biden administration also just announced its own Global Health Security Strategy, with a goal of combating health emergencies by using U.S. leadership to drive investment in prevention and response among partner countries.

But past crises have shown that complex global negotiations can move quickly.

“After Chernobyl, a legally binding treaty was negotiated within six months,” Schwalbe said, referring to the 1986 nuclear power plant disaster. “Covid-19 is a calamity of equal importance.”

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

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Donald Trump’s rally speech in Wisconsin examined

By CHRISTINA ANAGNOSTOPOULOS , SOFIA PAREDES and SEANA DAVIS

Filed April 20, 2024, 10 a.m. GMT

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

Reuters examined 11 statements made by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at his rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on April 2. While Reuters monitored the 58-minute speech in its entirety, the news agency did not examine opinions, rhetorical or direct questions, anonymous sourcing and information that could not be independently verified.

The statements are listed in chronological order with the timestamps in Central Daylight Time (CDT).

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:09 CDT

Trump says he won Wisconsin by “a lot,” referring to the 2020 presidential election

WHAT WE KNOW

This is false. Joe Biden won the state of Wisconsin in the 2020 presidential election with 49.4% of the vote over Trump’s 48.8%.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court declined to take up a case by Trump challenging the election results.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:11 CDT

Trump says Biden declared Easter Sunday to be Transgender Visibility Day

This is misleading. Biden made public remarks about Transgender Day of Visibility, but he did not say Easter Sunday would become Trans Visibility Day.

Transgender Day of Visibility has been celebrated on March 31 for 14 years, according to the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD . It happened to be the same day as Easter Sunday in 2024. Read more.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:12 CDT

While talking about crime during the Biden administration, Trump says crime in Venezuela is down by 67%

The source of the 67% figure is unclear. A Trump spokesperson did not respond to a Reuters request for the data supporting the figure.

According to the Venezuelan Violence Observatory , a Caracas-based research organization, violent deaths declined 25% last year from 2022.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:18 CDT (again at 17:37-17:39 and 17:45 CDT)

Trump repeats his false claim that the 2020 election was stolen or illegitimate

This is false. State governments, courts and members of Trump’s administration have repeatedly rejected the former president’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen .

Federal and state judges have dismissed more than 50 lawsuits alleging election fraud or other irregularities related to the 2020 presidential election brought by Trump or his allies. Read more .

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:19 CDT

Trump quotes Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban as saying, “The only way you’re going to clean up this world is if Trump becomes president again”

This is in line with past statements Hungary’s nationalist prime minister has made about Trump. Orban said in a meeting with the former president in Florida last month that only Trump could bring peace to Ukraine’s conflict with Russia.

“We need leaders in the world who are respected and can bring peace. He is one of them! Come back and bring us peace, Mr. President!,” Orban said in a post on X after that meeting.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:26 CDT

Trump says he built 571 miles of border wall. He did not specify which land border but since 2016 he has campaigned for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

This is not accurate. The Trump administration completed around 458 miles of barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to January 2021 U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

The majority were barriers that were built during previous administrations and replaced during Trump’s tenure. In areas where no structures existed prior to Trump taking office in January 2017, his administration constructed a total of 52 miles of primary wall.

A January 2021 CBP report obtained by Factcheck.org shows 33 miles of new secondary wall were built during Trump’s tenure.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:27 CDT

Trump says illegal immigration into the U.S. fell to its lowest point “in history” during his presidency

This is mostly true, based on available government data.

During Trump’s administration, the number of apprehensions by the U.S. Border Patrol at the southwest border (an indicator of attempts of illegal border crossings) for a single month fell to their lowest point on record in April 2017, according to monthly CBP data that goes back to fiscal year 2000 .

CBP has yearly data for nationwide apprehensions by all land, air and sea routes since fiscal year 1925.

Going by these figures, Trump’s aren’t the lowest on record but they are the lowest in over four decades. In fiscal year 1971, during Richard Nixon’s administration, total apprehensions dipped to 302,517, which is below Trump’s lowest tally of 310,531 in fiscal year 2017.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:30 CDT

Trump says wages rose during his presidency without any inflation

Nationwide wages rose 3.1% during Trump’s presidency, based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Cost Index inflation-adjusted constant dollar estimates.

Inflation was not at zero, but it was lower than during the Biden administration.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) during the Trump administration varied from a high of 2.9% in July 2018 to a low of 0.2% in May 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic’s first wave.

It is true that inflation significantly increased during Biden’s tenure; it stood at 1.4% when he took office and rose to 9% in June 2022, following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.

Inflation rates have remained below 3.6% since October 2023.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:34 CDT

The U.S. has more oil and gas than any country in the world

Venezuela has the largest proven crude oil reserves as of 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) while Russia has the largest natural gas reserves, per the International Energy Agency.

As for recoverable oil resources, the expected amounts in existing fields, Saudi Arabia leads the way followed by the U.S. and Russia, according to a 2023 report by oil analysts Rystad Energy.

In terms of production, the U.S. became the world’s largest crude oil producer in 2018 during Trump’s presidency and has remained the top producer since.

The U.S. is also the top producer of natural gas. Since 2017, U.S. natural gas exports have exceeded imports. The latest rankings available (2022) from the EIA show the U.S. produces more energy from petroleum and other liquids than any other country.

The U.S. oil and gas industry has also boomed under Biden’s presidency by almost all metrics, even if he has pushed to transition the economy toward a greener future, hitting record levels of crude oil production in 2023. Read more.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:36-17:37 CDT

Talking about immigration, Trump says that under the Biden administration, the U.S. has taken in “at least 15 million people”

It’s not clear what Trump meant by the U.S. having “taken in” 15 million people. While it is true that the number of encounters reported by the CBP at the U.S.-Mexico border reached record levels during the Biden administration, it isn’t 15 million.

CBP data compiled between January 2021 and February 2024 show 7,522,711 encounters at the southwest land border.

In terms of nationwide encounters , CBP registered 9,139,037 encounters between January 2021 and February 2024.

Encounter figures include data for Title 8 apprehensions and inadmissibles . This policy grants some migrants the chance to seek asylum in the U.S. or be processed for deportation.

Between March 2020 and May 2023, encounters also included expulsions under the now-expired Title 42 , a COVID-era restriction that allowed border agents to quickly expel migrants without allowing them to seek asylum.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

CLAIM  17:50-17:51 CDT

Trump says he was the first president in decades who started no new wars

Defining wars can be difficult. If we consider the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the war in Afghanistan and the Iraq War, Trump joins former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy and Dwight D. Eisenhower in not having officially brought the U.S. into a new war since 1945.

Trump’s tenure, however, did involve military hostilities overseas and the threat of new ones. The Pentagon said Trump ordered a 2020 drone strike in Iraq that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani , triggering Iranian retaliation that threatened to spiral into open conflict, but did not.

The United States in 2017 launched a missile attack on a Syrian army airbase, marking an escalation of the U.S. military’s role in Syria.

Trump threatened to “totally destroy” North Korea in 2017 but eventually de-escalated tension with Pyongyang.

A Trump spokesperson did not respond to several requests for comment about the statements examined.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work.

By Christina Anagnostopoulos, Sofia Paredes and Seana Davis

Photo editing: Corinne Perkins

Art direction: John Emerson

Edited by Stephanie Burnett, Suzanne Goldenberg and Christine Soares

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Dear Annie: How do I tell my friend that I think her 2-year-old needs speech therapy?

Dear Annie : Over the years, I have worked in day care centers for 2-year-olds, and my husband is a speech therapist. I have a family friend who is raising a 2-year-old from the community. We see their child continuously and think that he is behind developmentally, especially in speech.

They could hypothetically wait until he is old enough to go to school and, hopefully, the school figures it out, but I have worked with those who have special needs and know that the earlier the intervention, the better the outcome.

The only issue is how to tell the mom that we think they should apply for speech therapy without freaking them out that their child is behind. I just know that with all of these therapies, it may help this child in the future for success. He is an only child.

-- Family Friend

Dear Family Friend: I would make doubly sure that you are correct in your diagnosis before you speak with your friend, but once you do, tell your friend your thoughts about the toddler’s speech. You and your husband could even offer to help out while you find a good professional, assuming she is up for that. Friends tell friends the truth even if it is difficult. If she is truly a good friend, she will appreciate that you helped her get early intervention.

Dear Readers: Wishing you all a very Happy Passover and Happy Earth Day.

Below is a poem by a great lover of nature, Henry David Thoreau.

“O Nature! I do not aspire / To be the highest in thy quire, -- / To be a meteor in the sky, / Or comet that may range on high; / Only a zephyr that may blow / Among the reeds by the river low; / Give me thy most privy place / Where to run my airy race. / In some withdrawn, unpublic mead / Let me sigh upon a reed, / Or in the woods, with leafy din, / Whisper the still evening in: / Some still work give me to do, -- / Only -- be it near to you! / For I’d rather be thy child / And pupil, in the forest wild, / Than be the king of men elsewhere, / And most sovereign slave of care: / To have one moment of thy dawn, / Than share the city’s year forlorn.”

Annie Lane offers common-sense solutions to everyday problems. She's firm, funny and sympathetic, echoing the style of her biggest inspiration, Ann Landers. She lives outside Manhattan with her husband, two kids and two dogs. When not writing, she devotes her time to play dates and Play-Doh. Write her: [email protected]

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Presidential Speeches

September 9, 2021: remarks on fighting the covid-⁠19 pandemic, about this speech.

September 09, 2021

As the Delta variant of the Covid-19 virus spreads and cases and deaths increase in the United States, President Joe Biden announces new efforts to fight the pandemic. He outlines six broad areas of action--implementing new vaccination requirements, protecting the vaccinated with booster shots, keeping children safe and schools open, increasing testing and masking, protecting our economic recovery, and improving care of those who do get Covid-19. 

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THE PRESIDENT: Good evening, my fellow Americans. I want to talk to you about where we are in the battle against COVID-19, the progress we’ve made, and the work we have left to do.

And it starts with understanding this: Even as the Delta variant 19 [sic] has—COVID-19—has been hitting this country hard, we have the tools to combat the virus, if we can come together as a country and use those tools.

If we raise our vaccination rate, protect ourselves and others with masking and expanded testing, and identify people who are infected, we can and we will turn the tide on COVID-19.

It will take a lot of hard work, and it’s going to take some time. Many of us are frustrated with the nearly 80 million Americans who are still not vaccinated, even though the vaccine is safe, effective, and free.

You might be confused about what is true and what is false about COVID-19. So before I outline the new steps to fight COVID-19 that I’m going to be announcing tonight, let me give you some clear information about where we stand.

First, we have cons—we have made considerable progress

in battling COVID-19. When I became President, about 2 million Americans were fully vaccinated. Today, over 175 million Americans have that protection. 

Before I took office, we hadn’t ordered enough vaccine for every American. Just weeks in office, we did. The week before I took office, on January 20th of this year, over 25,000 Americans died that week from COVID-19. Last week, that grim weekly toll was down 70 percent.

And in the three months before I took office, our economy was faltering, creating just 50,000 jobs a month. We’re now averaging 700,000 new jobs a month in the past three months.

This progress is real. But while America is in much better shape than it was seven months ago when I took office, I need to tell you a second fact.

We’re in a tough stretch, and it could last for a while. The highly contagious Delta variant that I began to warn America about back in July spread in late summer like it did in other countries before us.

While the vaccines provide strong protections for the vaccinated, we read about, we hear about, and we see the stories of hospitalized people, people on their death beds, among the unvaccinated over these past few weeks. 

This is a pandemic of the unvaccinated. And it’s caused by the fact that despite America having an unprecedented and successful vaccination program, despite the fact that for almost five months free vaccines have been available in 80,000 different locations, we still have nearly 80 million Americans who have failed to get the shot. 

And to make matters worse, there are elected officials actively working to undermine the fight against COVID-19. Instead of encouraging people to get vaccinated and mask up, they’re ordering mobile morgues for the unvaccinated dying from COVID in their communities. This is totally unacceptable.

Third, if you wonder how all this adds up, here’s the math: The vast majority of Americans are doing the right thing. Nearly three quarters of the eligible have gotten at least one shot, but one quarter has not gotten any. That’s nearly 80 million Americans not vaccinated. And in a country as large as ours, that’s 25 percent minority. That 25 percent can cause a lot of damage—and they are.

The unvaccinated overcrowd our hospitals, are overrunning the emergency rooms and intensive care units, leaving no room for someone with a heart attack, or pancreitis [pancreatitis], or cancer.

And fourth, I want to emphasize that the vaccines provide very strong protection from severe illness from COVID-19. I know there’s a lot of confusion and misinformation. But the world’s leading scientists confirm that if you are fully vaccinated, your risk of severe illness from COVID-19 is very low. 

In fact, based on available data from the summer, only one of out of every 160,000 fully vaccinated Americans was hospitalized for COVID per day.

These are the facts. 

So here’s where we stand: The path ahead, even with the Delta variant, is not nearly as bad as last winter. But what makes it incredibly more frustrating is that we have the tools to combat COVID-19, and a distinct minority of Americans –supported by a distinct minority of elected officials—are keeping us from turning the corner. These pandemic politics, as I refer to, are making people sick, causing unvaccinated people to die. 

We cannot allow these actions to stand in the way of protecting the large majority of Americans who have done their part and want to get back to life as normal. 

As your President, I’m announcing tonight a new plan to require more Americans to be vaccinated, to combat those blocking public health. 

My plan also increases testing, protects our economy, and will make our kids safer in schools. It consists of six broad areas of action and many specific measures in each that—and each of those actions that you can read more about at WhiteHouse.gov. WhiteHouse.gov.

The measures—these are going to take time to have full impact. But if we implement them, I believe and the scientists indicate, that in the months ahead we can reduce the number of unvaccinated Americans, decrease hospitalizations and deaths, and allow our children to go to school safely and keep our economy strong by keeping businesses open.

First, we must increase vaccinations among the unvaccinated with new vaccination requirements. Of the nearly 80 million eligible Americans who have not gotten vaccinated, many said they were waiting for approval from the Food and Drug Administration—the FDA. Well, last month, the FDA granted that approval.

So, the time for waiting is over. This summer, we made progress through the combination of vaccine requirements and incentives, as well as the FDA approval. Four million more people got their first shot in August than they did in July. 

But we need to do more. This is not about freedom or personal choice. It’s about protecting yourself and those around you—the people you work with, the people you care about, the people you love.

My job as President is to protect all Americans. 

So, tonight, I’m announcing that the Department of Labor is developing an emergency rule to require all employers with 100 or more employees, that together employ over 80 million workers, to ensure their workforces are fully vaccinated or show a negative test at least once a week.

Some of the biggest companies are already requiring this: United Airlines, Disney, Tysons Food, and even Fox News.

The bottom line: We’re going to protect vaccinated workers from unvaccinated co-workers. We’re going to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by increasing the share of the workforce that is vaccinated in businesses all across America.

My plan will extend the vaccination requirements that I previously issued in the healthcare field. Already, I’ve announced, we’ll be requiring vaccinations that all nursing home workers who treat patients on Medicare and Medicaid, because I have that federal authority.

Tonight, I’m using that same authority to expand that to cover those who work in hospitals, home healthcare facilities, or other medical facilities–a total of 17 million healthcare workers.

If you’re seeking care at a health facility, you should be able to know that the people treating you are vaccinated. Simple. Straightforward. Period.

Next, I will sign an executive order that will now require all executive branch federal employees to be vaccinated—all. And I’ve signed another executive order that will require federal contractors to do the same.

If you want to work with the federal government and do business with us, get vaccinated. If you want to do business with the federal government, vaccinate your workforce. 

And tonight, I’m removing one of the last remaining obstacles that make it difficult for you to get vaccinated.

The Department of Labor will require employers with 100 or more workers to give those workers paid time off to get vaccinated. No one should lose pay in order to get vaccinated or take a loved one to get vaccinated.

Today, in total, the vaccine requirements in my plan will affect about 100 million Americans—two thirds of all workers. 

And for other sectors, I issue this appeal: To those of you running large entertainment venues—from sports arenas to concert venues to movie theaters—please require folks to get vaccinated or show a negative test as a condition of entry.

And to the nation’s family physicians, pediatricians, GPs—general practitioners—you’re the most trusted medical voice to your patients. You may be the one person who can get someone to change their mind about being vaccinated. 

Tonight, I’m asking each of you to reach out to your unvaccinated patients over the next two weeks and make a personal appeal to them to get the shot. America needs your personal involvement in this critical effort.

And my message to unvaccinated Americans is this: What more is there to wait for? What more do you need to see? We’ve made vaccinations free, safe, and convenient.

The vaccine has FDA approval. Over 200 million Americans have gotten at least one shot. 

We’ve been patient, but our patience is wearing thin. And your refusal has cost all of us. So, please, do the right thing. But just don’t take it from me; listen to the voices of unvaccinated Americans who are lying in hospital beds, taking their final breaths, saying, “If only I had gotten vaccinated.” “If only.”

It’s a tragedy. Please don’t let it become yours.

The second piece of my plan is continuing to protect the vaccinated.

For the vast majority of you who have gotten vaccinated, I understand your anger at those who haven’t gotten vaccinated. I understand the anxiety about getting a “breakthrough” case.

But as the science makes clear, if you’re fully vaccinated, you’re highly protected from severe illness, even if you get COVID-19. 

In fact, recent data indicates there is only one confirmed positive case per 5,000 fully vaccinated Americans per day.

You’re as safe as possible, and we’re doing everything we can to keep it that way—keep it that way, keep you safe.

That’s where boosters come in—the shots that give you even more protection than after your second shot.

Now, I know there’s been some confusion about boosters. So, let me be clear: Last month, our top government doctors announced an initial plan for booster shots for vaccinated Americans. They believe that a booster is likely to provide the highest level of protection yet.

Of course, the decision of which booster shots to give, when to start them, and who will give them, will be left completely to the scientists at the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control.

But while we wait, we’ve done our part. We’ve bought enough boosters—enough booster shots—and the distribution system is ready to administer them.

As soon as they are authorized, those eligible will be able to get a booster right away in tens of thousands of site across the—sites across the country for most Americans, at your nearby drug store, and for free. 

The third piece of my plan is keeping—and maybe the most important—is keeping our children safe and our schools open. For any parent, it doesn’t matter how low the risk of any illness or accident is when it comes to your child or grandchild. Trust me, I know. 

So, let me speak to you directly. Let me speak to you directly to help ease some of your worries.

It comes down to two separate categories: children ages 12 and older who are eligible for a vaccine now, and children ages 11 and under who are not are yet eligible.

The safest thing for your child 12 and older is to get them vaccinated. They get vaccinated for a lot of things. That’s it. Get them vaccinated.

As with adults, almost all the serious COVID-19 cases we’re seeing among adolescents are in unvaccinated 12- to 17-year-olds—an age group that lags behind in vaccination rates.

So, parents, please get your teenager vaccinated.

What about children under the age of 12 who can’t get vaccinated yet? Well, the best way for a parent to protect their child under the age of 12 starts at home. Every parent, every teen sibling, every caregiver around them should be vaccinated. 

Children have four times higher chance of getting hospitalized if they live in a state with low vaccination rates rather than the states with high vaccination rates. 

Now, if you’re a parent of a young child, you’re wondering when will it be—when will it be—the vaccine available for them. I strongly support an independent scientific review for vaccine uses for children under 12. We can’t take shortcuts with that scientific work. 

But I’ve made it clear I will do everything within my power to support the FDA with any resource it needs to continue to do this as safely and as quickly as possible, and our nation’s top doctors are committed to keeping the public at large updated on the process so parents can plan.

Now to the schools. We know that if schools follow the science and implement the safety measures—like testing, masking, adequate ventilation systems that we provided the money for, social distancing, and vaccinations—then children can be safe from COVID-19 in schools.

Today, about 90 percent of school staff and teachers are vaccinated. We should get that to 100 percent. My administration has already acquired teachers at the schools run by the Defense Department—because I have the authority as President in the federal system—the Defense Department and the Interior Department—to get vaccinated. That’s authority I possess. 

Tonight, I’m announcing that we’ll require all of nearly 300,000 educators in the federal paid program, Head Start program, must be vaccinated as well to protect your youngest—our youngest—most precious Americans and give parents the comfort.

And tonight, I’m calling on all governors to require vaccination for all teachers and staff. Some already have done so, but we need more to step up. 

Vaccination requirements in schools are nothing new. They work. They’re overwhelmingly supported by educators and their unions. And to all school officials trying to do the right thing by our children: I’ll always be on your side. 

Let me be blunt. My plan also takes on elected officials and states that are undermining you and these lifesaving actions. Right now, local school officials are trying to keep children safe in a pandemic while their governor picks a fight with them and even threatens their salaries or their jobs. Talk about bullying in schools. If they’ll not help—if these governors won’t help us beat the pandemic, I’ll use my power as President to get them out of the way. 

The Department of Education has already begun to take legal action against states undermining protection that local school officials have ordered. Any teacher or school official whose pay is withheld for doing the right thing, we will have that pay restored by the federal government 100 percent. I promise you I will have your back. 

The fourth piece of my plan is increasing testing and masking. From the start, America has failed to do enough COVID-19 testing. In order to better detect and control the Delta variant, I’m taking steps tonight to make testing more available, more affordable, and more convenient. I’ll use the Defense Production Act to increase production of rapid tests, including those that you can use at home. 

While that production is ramping up, my administration has worked with top retailers, like Walmart, Amazon, and Kroger’s, and tonight we’re announcing that, no later than next week, each of these outlets will start to sell at-home rapid test kits at cost for the next three months. This is an immediate price reduction for at-home test kits for up to 35 percent reduction.

We’ll also expand—expand free testing at 10,000 pharmacies around the country. And we’ll commit—we’re committing $2 billion to purchase nearly 300 million rapid tests for distribution to community health centers, food banks, schools, so that every American, no matter their income, can access free and convenient tests. This is important to everyone, particularly for a parent or a child—with a child not old enough to be vaccinated. You’ll be able to test them at home and test those around them.

In addition to testing, we know masking helps stop the spread of COVID-19. That’s why when I came into office, I required masks for all federal buildings and on federal lands, on airlines, and other modes of transportation. 

Today—tonight, I’m announcing that the Transportation Safety Administration—the TSA—will double the fines on travelers that refuse to mask. If you break the rules, be prepared to pay. 

And, by the way, show some respect. The anger you see on television toward flight attendants and others doing their job is wrong; it’s ugly. 

The fifth piece of my plan is protecting our economic recovery. Because of our vaccination program and the American Rescue Plan, which we passed early in my administration, we’ve had record job creation for a new administration, economic growth unmatched in 40 years. We cannot let unvaccinated do this progress—undo it, turn it back. 

So tonight, I’m announcing additional steps to strengthen our economic recovery. We’ll be expanding COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan programs. That’s a program that’s going to allow small businesses to borrow up to $2 million from the current $500,000 to keep going if COVID-19 impacts on their sales. 

These low-interest, long-term loans require no repayment for two years and be can used to hire and retain workers, purchase inventory, or even pay down higher cost debt racked up since the pandemic began. I’ll also be taking additional steps to help small businesses stay afloat during the pandemic. 

Sixth, we’re going to continue to improve the care of those who do get COVID-19. In early July, I announced the deployment of surge response teams. These are teams comprised of experts from the Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC, the Defense Department, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency—FEMA—to areas in the country that need help to stem the spread of COVID-19. 

Since then, the federal government has deployed nearly 1,000 staff, including doctors, nurses, paramedics, into 18 states. Today, I’m announcing that the Defense Department will double the number of military health teams that they’ll deploy to help their fellow Americans in hospitals around the country. 

Additionally, we’re increasing the availability of new medicines recommended by real doctors, not conspir-—conspiracy theorists. The monoclonal antibody treatments have been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization by up to 70 percent for unvaccinated people at risk of developing sefe-—severe disease. 

We’ve already distributed 1.4 million courses of these treatments to save lives and reduce the strain on hospitals. Tonight, I’m announcing we will increase the average pace of shipment across the country of free monoclonal antibody treatments by another 50 percent.

Before I close, let me say this: Communities of color are disproportionately impacted by this virus. And as we continue to battle COVID-19, we will ensure that equity continues to be at the center of our response. We’ll ensure that everyone is reached. My first responsibility as President is to protect the American people and make sure we have enough vaccine for every American, including enough boosters for every American who’s approved to get one. 

We also know this virus transcends borders. That’s why, even as we execute this plan at home, we need to continue fighting the virus overseas, continue to be the arsenal of vaccines. 

We’re proud to have donated nearly 140 million vaccines over 90 countries, more than all other countries combined, including Europe, China, and Russia combined. That’s American leadership on a global stage, and that’s just the beginning.

We’ve also now started to ship another 500 million COVID vaccines—Pfizer vaccines—purchased to donate to 100 lower-income countries in need of vaccines. And I’ll be announcing additional steps to help the rest of the world later this month.

As I recently released the key parts of my pandemic preparedness plan so that America isn’t caught flat-footed when a new pandemic comes again—as it will—next month, I’m also going to release the plan in greater detail.

So let me close with this: We have so-—we’ve made so much progress during the past seven months of this pandemic. The recent increases in vaccinations in August already are having an impact in some states where case counts are dropping in recent days. Even so, we remain at a critical moment, a critical time. We have the tools. Now we just have to finish the job with truth, with science, with confidence, and together as one nation.

Look, we’re the United States of America. There’s nothing—not a single thing—we’re unable to do if we do it together. So let’s stay together.

God bless you all and all those who continue to serve on the frontlines of this pandemic. And may God protect our troops.

Get vaccinated.

More Joe Biden speeches

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Biden trolls Trump on injecting bleach anniversary

P resident Biden on Tuesday trolled former President Trump on the fourth anniversary of him suggesting Americans inject bleach during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Biden shared a video, marking that four years ago Trump infamously said, “I see the disinfectant, which knocks it out in a minute … is there a way we can do something like that? By injection inside, almost a cleaning.”

“Don’t inject bleach. And don’t vote for the guy who told you to inject bleach,” Biden said in his post  on the social platform X.

The president has trolled Trump, his expected rival in November’s election, before for the injecting bleach comments.

“Remember when he told us, literally, inject bleach?” the president said at a campaign event last week. “Bless me, Father.”

After Trump’s remarks in April 2020, he faced broad pushback and scrutiny from the medical community. Trump suggested medical experts  should study the use of light or disinfectant  as a treatment for the disease after a top science official at the Department of Homeland Security shared research that said bleach and isopropyl alcohol each kill the virus within minutes.

Then-White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany  accused the media  of taking his remarks out of context, arguing that “President Trump has repeatedly said that Americans should consult with medical doctors regarding coronavirus treatment.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.

Biden trolls Trump on injecting bleach anniversary

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The Evolving Danger of the New Bird Flu

An unusual outbreak of the disease has spread to dairy herds in multiple u.s. states..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

From “The New York Times,” I’m Sabrina Tavernise, and this is “The Daily.”

[MUSIC PLAYING]

The outbreak of bird flu that is tearing through the nation’s poultry farms is the worst in US history. But scientists say it’s now starting to spread into places and species it’s never been before.

Today, my colleague, Emily Anthes, explains.

It’s Monday, April 22.

Emily, welcome back to the show.

Thanks for having me. Happy to be here.

So, Emily, we’ve been talking here on “The Daily” about prices of things and how they’ve gotten so high, mostly in the context of inflation episodes. And one of the items that keeps coming up is eggs. Egg prices were through the roof last year, and we learned it was related to this. Avian flu has been surging in the United States. You’ve been covering this. Tell us what’s happening.

Yes, so I have been covering this virus for the last few years. And the bird flu is absolutely tearing through poultry flocks, and that is affecting egg prices. That’s a concern for everyone, for me and for my family. But when it comes to scientists, egg prices are pretty low on their list of concerns. Because they see this bird flu virus behaving differently than previous versions have. And they’re getting nervous, in particular, about the fact that this virus is reaching places and species where it’s never been before.

OK, so bird flu, though, isn’t new. I mean I remember hearing about cases in Asia in the ‘90s. Remind us how it began.

Bird flu refers to a bunch of different viruses that are adapted to spread best in birds. Wild water birds, in particular, are known for carrying these viruses. And flu viruses are famous for also being shapeshifters. So they’re constantly swapping genes around and evolving into new strains. And as you mentioned back in the ‘90s, a new version of bird flu, a virus known as H5N1, emerged in Asia. And it has been spreading on and off around the world since then, causing periodic outbreaks.

And how are these outbreaks caused?

So wild birds are the reservoir for the virus, which means they carry it in their bodies with them around the world as they fly and travel and migrate. And most of the time, these wild birds, like ducks and geese, don’t even get very sick from this virus. But they shed it. So as they’re traveling over a poultry farm maybe, if they happen to go to the bathroom in a pond that the chickens on the farm are using or eat some of the feed that chickens on the farm are eating, they can leave the virus behind.

And the virus can get into chickens. In some cases, it causes mild illness. It’s what’s known as low pathogenic avian influenza. But sometimes the virus mutates and evolves, and it can become extremely contagious and extremely fatal in poultry.

OK, so the virus comes through wild birds, but gets into farms like this, as you’re describing. How have farms traditionally handled outbreaks, when they do happen?

Well, because this threat isn’t new, there is a pretty well-established playbook for containing outbreaks. It’s sometimes known as stamping out. And brutally, what it means is killing the birds. So the virus is so deadly in this highly pathogenic form that it’s sort of destined to kill all the birds on a farm anyway once it gets in. So the response has traditionally been to proactively depopulate or cull all the birds, so it doesn’t have a chance to spread.

So that’s pretty costly for farmers.

It is. Although the US has a program where it will reimburse farmers for their losses. And the way these reimbursements work is they will reimburse farmers only for the birds that are proactively culled, and not for those who die naturally from the virus. And the thinking behind that is it’s a way to incentivize farmers to report outbreaks early.

So, OK, lots of chickens are killed in a way to manage these outbreaks. So we know how to deal with them. But what about now? Tell me about this new strain.

So this new version of the virus, it emerged in 2020.

After the deadly outbreak of the novel coronavirus, authorities have now confirmed an outbreak of the H5N1 strain of influenza, a kind of bird flu.

And pretty quickly it became clear that a couple things set it apart.

A bald eagle found dead at Carvins Cove has tested positive for the highly contagious bird flu.

This virus, for whatever reason, seemed very good at infecting all sorts of wild birds that we don’t normally associate with bird flu.

[BIRD CRYING]

He was kind of stepping, and then falling over, and using its wing to right itself.

Things like eagles and condors and pelicans.

We just lost a parliament of owls in Minneapolis.

Yeah, a couple of high profile nests.

And also in the past, wild birds have not traditionally gotten very sick from this virus. And this version of the virus not only spread widely through the wild bird population, but it proved to be devastating.

The washing up along the East Coast of the country from Scotland down to Suffolk.

We were hearing about mass die-offs of seabirds in Europe by the hundreds and the thousands.

And the bodies of the dead dot the island wherever you look.

Wow. OK. So then as we know, this strain, like previous ones, makes its way from wild animals to farmed animals, namely to chickens. But it’s even more deadly.

Absolutely. And in fact, it has already caused the worst bird flu outbreak in US history. So more than 90 million birds in the US have died as a result of this virus.

90 million birds.

Yes, and I should be clear that represents two things. So some of those birds are birds who naturally got infected and died from the virus. But the vast majority of them are birds that were proactively culled. What it adds up to is, is 90 million farmed birds in the US have died since this virus emerged. And it’s not just a chicken problem. Another thing that has been weird about this virus is it has jumped into other kinds of farms. It is the first time we’ve seen a bird flu virus jump into US livestock.

And it’s now been reported on a number of dairy farms across eight US states. And that’s just something that’s totally unprecedented.

So it’s showing up at Dairy farms now. You’re saying that bird flu has now spread to cows. How did that happen?

So we don’t know exactly how cows were first infected, but most scientists’ best guess is that maybe an infected wild bird that was migrating shed the virus into some cattle feed or a pasture or a pond, and cattle picked it up. The good news is they don’t seem to get nearly as sick as chickens do. They are generally making full recoveries on their own in a couple of weeks.

OK, so no mass culling of cows?

No, that doesn’t seem to be necessary at this point. But the bad news is that it’s starting to look like we’re seeing this virus spread from cow to cow. We don’t know exactly how that’s happening yet. But anytime you see cow-to-cow or mammal-to-mammal transmission, that’s a big concern.

And why is that exactly?

Well, there are a bunch of reasons. First, it could allow the outbreak to get much bigger, much faster, which might increase the risk to the food supply. And we might also expect it to increase the risk to farm workers, people who might be in contact with these sick cows.

Right now, the likelihood that a farmer who gets this virus passes it on is pretty low. But any time you see mammal-to-mammal transmission, it increases the chance that the virus will adapt and possibly, maybe one day get good at spreading between humans. To be clear, that’s not something that there’s any evidence happening in cows right now. But the fact that there’s any cow-to-cow transmission happening at all is enough to have scientists a bit concerned.

And then if we think more expansively beyond what’s happening on farms, there’s another big danger lurking out there. And that’s what happens when this virus gets into wild animals, vast populations that we can’t control.

We’ll be right back.

So, Emily, you said that another threat was the threat of flu in wild animal populations. Clearly, of course, it’s already in wild birds. Where else has it gone?

Well, the reason it’s become such a threat is because of how widespread it’s become in wild birds. So they keep reintroducing it to wild animal populations pretty much anywhere they go. So we’ve seen the virus repeatedly pop up in all sorts of animals that you might figure would eat a wild bird, so foxes, bobcats, bears. We actually saw it in a polar bear, raccoons. So a lot of carnivores and scavengers.

The thinking is that these animals might stumble across a sick or dead bird, eat it, and contract the virus that way. But we’re also seeing it show up in some more surprising places, too. We’ve seen the virus in a bottle-nosed dolphin, of all places.

And most devastatingly, we’ve seen enormous outbreaks in other sorts of marine mammals, especially sea lions and seals.

So elephant seals, in particular in South America, were just devastated by this virus last fall. My colleague Apoorva Mandavilli and I were talking to some scientists in South America who described to us what they called a scene from hell, of walking out onto a beach in Argentina that is normally crowded with chaotic, living, breathing, breeding, elephant seals — and the beach just being covered by carcass, after carcass, after carcass.

Mostly carcasses of young newborn pups. The virus seemed to have a mortality rate of 95 percent in these elephant seal pups, and they estimated that it might have killed more than 17,000 of the pups that were born last year. So almost the entire new generation of this colony. These are scientists that have studied these seals for decades. And they said they’ve never seen anything like it before.

And why is it so far reaching, Emily? I mean, what explains these mass die-offs?

There are probably a few explanations. One is just how much virus is out there in the environment being shed by wild birds into water and onto beaches. These are also places that viruses like this haven’t been before. So it’s reaching elephant seals and sea lions in South America that have no prior immunity.

There’s also the fact that these particular species, these sea lions and seals, tend to breed in these huge colonies all crowded together on beaches. And so what that means is if a virus makes its way into the colony, it’s very conducive conditions for it to spread. And scientists think that that’s actually what’s happening now. That it’s not just that all these seals are picking up the virus from individual birds, but that they’re actually passing it to each other.

So basically, this virus is spreading to places it’s never been before, kind of virgin snow territory, where animals just don’t have the immunity against it. And once it gets into a population packed on a beach, say, of elephant seals, it’s just like a knife through butter.

Absolutely. And an even more extreme example of that is what we’re starting to see happen in Antarctica, where there’s never been a bird flu outbreak before until last fall, for the first time, this virus reached the Antarctic mainland. And we are now seeing the virus move through colonies of not only seabirds and seals, but penguin colonies, which have not been exposed to these viruses before.

And it’s too soon to say what the toll will be. But penguins also, of course, are known for breeding in these large colonies.

Probably. don’t have many immune defenses against this virus, and of course, are facing all these other environmental threats. And so there’s a lot of fear that you add on the stress of a bird flu virus, and it could just be a tipping point for penguins.

Emily, at this point, I’m kind of wondering why more people aren’t talking about this. I mean, I didn’t know any of this before having this conversation with you, and it feels pretty worrying.

Well, a lot of experts and scientists are talking about this with rising alarm and in terms that are quite stark. They’re talking about the virus spreading through wild animal populations so quickly and so ferociously that they’re calling it an ecological disaster.

But that’s a disaster that sometimes seems distant from us, both geographically, we’re talking about things that are happening maybe at the tip of Argentina or in Antarctica. And also from our concerns of our everyday lives, what’s happening in Penguins might not seem like it has a lot to do with the price of a carton of eggs at the grocery store. But I think that we should be paying a lot of attention to how this virus is moving through animal populations, how quickly it’s moving through animal populations, and the opportunities that it is giving the virus to evolve into something that poses a much bigger threat to human health.

So the way it’s spreading in wild animals, even in remote places like Antarctica, that’s important to watch, at least in part because there’s a real danger to people here.

So we know that the virus can infect humans, and that generally it’s not very good at spreading between humans. But the concern all along has been that if this virus has more opportunities to spread between mammals, it will get better at spreading between them. And that seems to be what is happening in seals and sea lions. Scientists are already seeing evidence that the virus is adapting as it passes from marine mammal to marine mammal. And that could turn it into a virus that’s also better at spreading between people.

And if somebody walks out onto a beach and touches a dead sea lion, if their dog starts playing with a sea lion carcass, you could imagine that this virus could make its way out of marine mammals and into the human population. And if it’s this mammalian adapted version of the virus that makes its way out, that could be a bigger threat to human health.

So the sheer number of hosts that this disease has, the more opportunity it has to mutate, and the more chance it has to mutate in a way that would actually be dangerous for people.

Yes, and in particular, the more mammalian hosts. So that gives the virus many more opportunities to become a specialist in mammals instead of a specialist in birds, which is what it is right now.

Right. I like that, a specialist in mammals. So what can we do to contain this virus?

Well, scientists are exploring new options. There’s been a lot of discussion about whether we should start vaccinating chickens in the US. The government, USDA labs, have been testing some poultry vaccines. It’s probably scientifically feasible. There are challenges there, both in terms of logistics — just how would you go about vaccinating billions of chickens every year. There are also trade questions. Traditionally, a lot of countries have not been willing to accept poultry products from countries that vaccinate their poultry.

And there’s concern about whether the virus might spread undetected in flocks that are vaccinated. So as we saw with COVID, the vaccine can sometimes stop you from getting sick, but it doesn’t necessarily stop infection. And so countries are worried they might unknowingly import products that are harboring the virus.

And what about among wild animals? I mean, how do you even begin to get your head around that?

Yeah, I mean, thinking about vaccinating wild animals maybe makes vaccinating all the chickens in the US look easy. There has been some discussion of limited vaccination campaigns, but that’s not feasible on a global scale. So unfortunately, the bottom line is there isn’t a good way to stop spread in wild animals. We can try to protect some vulnerable populations, but we’re not going to stop the circulation of this virus.

So, Emily, we started this conversation with a kind of curiosity that “The Daily” had about the price of eggs. And then you explained the bird flu to us. And then somehow we ended up learning about an ecological disaster that’s unfolding all around us, and potentially the source of the next human pandemic. That is pretty scary.

It is scary, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by it. And I feel like I should take a step back and say none of this is inevitable. None of this is necessarily happening tomorrow. But this is why scientists are concerned and why they think it’s really important to keep a very close eye on what’s happening both on farms and off farms, as this virus spreads through all sorts of animal populations.

One thing that comes up again and again and again in my interviews with people who have been studying bird flu for decades, is how this virus never stops surprising them. And sometimes those are bad surprises, like these elephant seal die-offs, the incursions into dairy cattle. But there are some encouraging signs that have emerged recently. We’re starting to see some early evidence that some of the bird populations that survived early brushes with this virus might be developing some immunity. So that’s something that maybe could help slow the spread of this virus in animal populations.

We just don’t entirely know how this is going to play out. Flu is a very difficult, wily foe. And so that’s one reason scientists are trying to keep such a close, attentive eye on what’s happening.

Emily, thank you.

Thanks for having me.

Here’s what else you should know today.

On this vote, the yeas are 366 and the nays are 58. The bill is passed.

On Saturday, in four back-to-back votes, the House voted resoundingly to approve a long-stalled package of aid to Ukraine, Israel and other American allies, delivering a major victory to President Biden, who made aid to Ukraine one of his top priorities.

On this vote, the yeas are 385, and the no’s are 34 with one answering present. The bill is passed without objection.

The House passed the component parts of the $95 billion package, which included a bill that could result in a nationwide ban of TikTok.

On this vote, the yeas are 311 and the nays are 112. The bill is passed.

Oh, one voting present. I missed it, but thank you.

In a remarkable breach of custom, Democrats stepped in to supply the crucial votes to push the legislation past hard-line Republican opposition and bring it to the floor.

The House will be in order.

The Senate is expected to pass the legislation as early as Tuesday.

Today’s episode was produced by Rikki Novetsky, Nina Feldman, Eric Krupke, and Alex Stern. It was edited by Lisa Chow and Patricia Willens; contains original music by Marion Lozano, Dan Powell, Rowan Niemisto, and Sophia Lanman; and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Andrew Jacobs.

That’s it for “The Daily.” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. See you tomorrow.

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  • April 24, 2024   •   32:18 Is $60 Billion Enough to Save Ukraine?
  • April 23, 2024   •   30:30 A Salacious Conspiracy or Just 34 Pieces of Paper?
  • April 22, 2024   •   24:30 The Evolving Danger of the New Bird Flu
  • April 19, 2024   •   30:42 The Supreme Court Takes Up Homelessness
  • April 18, 2024   •   30:07 The Opening Days of Trump’s First Criminal Trial
  • April 17, 2024   •   24:52 Are ‘Forever Chemicals’ a Forever Problem?
  • April 16, 2024   •   29:29 A.I.’s Original Sin
  • April 15, 2024   •   24:07 Iran’s Unprecedented Attack on Israel
  • April 14, 2024   •   46:17 The Sunday Read: ‘What I Saw Working at The National Enquirer During Donald Trump’s Rise’
  • April 12, 2024   •   34:23 How One Family Lost $900,000 in a Timeshare Scam
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Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise

Produced by Rikki Novetsky ,  Nina Feldman ,  Eric Krupke and Alex Stern

Edited by Lisa Chow and Patricia Willens

Original music by Marion Lozano ,  Dan Powell ,  Rowan Niemisto and Sophia Lanman

Engineered by Chris Wood

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music

The outbreak of bird flu currently tearing through the nation’s poultry is the worst in U.S. history. Scientists say it is now spreading beyond farms into places and species it has never been before.

Emily Anthes, a science reporter for The Times, explains.

On today’s episode

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

Emily Anthes , a science reporter for The New York Times.

Two dead pelicans are pictured from above lying on the shore where the water meets a rocky beach.

Background reading

Scientists have faulted the federal response to bird flu outbreaks on dairy farms .

Here’s what to know about the outbreak.

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Special thanks to Andrew Jacobs .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

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Senate passes bill renewing key FISA surveillance power moments after it expires

 A view of the U.S. Capitol hours before the House of Representatives will transmit the articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate on April 16, 2024 in Washington, DC.

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted to reauthorize a powerful surveillance tool the U.S. government describes as critical to combating terrorism, after defeating efforts by civil liberties advocates on the left and right to rein it in.

The vote of 60-34 sends the bill to President Joe Biden, who has championed it. The legislation extends Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act , or FISA, for two more years.

The final vote came after the Senate defeated six amendments from progressive and conservative senators who said the spying powers are too broad and demanded protections for Americans’ civil liberties and privacy. The Biden administration and FISA supporters had warned that even a brief lapse could have a detrimental impact on the intelligence-gathering process.

Senators just missed the midnight deadline to reauthorize the FISA Section 702 statute but voted to reauthorize it minutes later. Had any amendments been adopted, the bill would have been sent back to the House, potentially forcing a lengthy lapse of the law.

“In the nick of time, bipartisanship has prevailed here in the Senate,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said.

“It wasn’t easy, people had many different views, but we all know one thing: letting FISA expire would have been dangerous. It’s an important part of our national security to stop acts of terror, drug trafficking, and violent extremism,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “Thank you to all my Senate colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their good work in getting this done.”

The House passed a two-year FISA renewal last week after defeating, by the slimmest of margins, an amendment to require a warrant to search through the communications of Americans as part of data collected while surveilling foreigners. Senators delayed a vote for days by pushing for amendments to make changes to the bill.

The bill’s passage came on the heels of a pitched battle between the U.S. intelligence community and an unusual coalition of progressive and conservative civil liberties advocates, who argued that the powers are too expansive and impinge on the privacy of Americans.

“It’s important that people understand how sweeping this bill is,” said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a member of the Intelligence Committee and outspoken proponent of privacy protections. “Something was inserted at the last minute, which would basically compel somebody like a cable guy to spy for the government. They would force the person to do it and there would be no appeal.”

In a rare break with Schumer and Biden, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the president pro tempore, opposed the bill, saying: “I have strong concerns that this expansion of FISA Section 702 authorities would allow for increased abuse and misuse of the law — infringing on the rights of Americans here at home.”

Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner, D-Va., pushed back on that and other criticisms of a House amendment added to the FISA reauthorization bill, arguing that it “is narrowly focused on a significant intelligence gap,” but some members like Wyden worry it could be abused.

“Contrary to what some have been saying, it expressly excludes coffee shops, bars, restaurants, residences, hotels, libraries, recreational facilities and a whole litany of similar establishments,” Warner said on the Senate floor Wednesday. “It also absolutely would not, as some critics have maintained, allow the U.S. government to compel, for example, a janitor working in an office building in Northern Virginia to spy for the intelligence community.”

Warner said that allowing FISA to expire would have put the U.S. in “uncharted territory” as companies who work with the government to provide intelligence might have stopped doing so without a reauthorization.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said that “60% of the president’s daily brief is composed of 702-derived materials, so this is absolutely critical.”

Attorney General Merrick Garland called Section 702 "indispensable" in a statement.

“This reauthorization of Section 702 gives the United States the authority to continue to collect foreign intelligence information about non-U.S. persons located outside the United States, while at the same time codifying important reforms the Justice Department has adopted to ensure the protection of Americans’ privacy and civil liberties," he said.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

Frank Thorp V is a producer and off-air reporter covering Congress for NBC News, managing coverage of the Senate.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

Sahil Kapur is a senior national political reporter for NBC News.

speech on covid 19 for 2 minutes

Ryan Nobles is a correspondent covering Capitol Hill.

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The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500

Remarks by President   Biden on the COVID- ⁠ 19 Response and the Vaccination   Program

South Court Auditorium Eisenhower Executive Office Building

1:57 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon.  Today, we have hit another milestone — a key milestone — in our nation’s fight against COVID.  The Food and Drug Administration, the FDA, announced that it’s fully concluded its — its now thorough and independent scientific review.

After a strict process, the FDA has reaffirmed its findings that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective, and the FDA has given its full and final approval.

So let me say this loudly and clearly: If you have — if you’re one of the millions of Americans who said that they will not get the shot when it’s — until it has full and final approval of the FDA, it has now happened.  The moment you’ve been waiting for is here, and it’s time for you to go get your vaccination and get it today.  Today.  It’s an important moment in our fight against the pandemic.

You know, I want to thank the Acting Commissioner, Janet Woodcock, and the entire team at the FDA for their hard work.

Dr. Woodcock is a true professional.  She’s a career scientist who served under Republican presidents and Democratic presidents.  She’s ensured that the team followed the science above all.

They looked at the mountains of clinical data — clinical trial data and the safety and efficiency [efficacy] data, and concluded, without question, the vaccine was safe and effective for emergency use in December.  That same thing — we’ve got those shots in arms at the time: 350 million in the United States and billions across the world.  They kept pouring over this data.  The FDA approval is the gold standard.

And as I just said, now it has been granted.  Those who have been waiting for full approval should go get your shot now.

Vaccination is free.  It’s easy, it’s safe, and it’s effective.  And it’s convenient.

For 90 percent of Americans, there’s a vaccination site less than five miles from your home, and you can get the shot without an appointment.

So, please, get your shot today.  There’s no time to waste.

The Delta variant is dangerous and spreading, causing a pandemic of the unvaccinated.  That’s the pandemic of the vaccinated.  And while we’re starting to see initial signs that cases may be declining in a few places, nationwide cases are still rising, especially among the unvaccinated.

Across the country, virtually all of the COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths continue to be among the unvaccinated.  That’s worse in states where vaccination rates are overall low.  But even in states where many people are vaccinated, the unvaccinated are still at risk.

Let me be clear: There are cases where vaccinated people do get COVID-19, but they are far less common than unvaccinated people getting COVID-19.  And most importantly, their conditions are far less severe. 

The overwhelming majority of people in the hospital have COVID-19 are — almost all of those dying from COVID-19 are not vaccinated.  Not vaccinated. 

If you’re fully vaccinated — both shots, plus two weeks — your risk of severe illness from COVID-19 is very, very, very low. 

Now, I know that parents are concerned about COVID-19 cases among their children.  I’ll be addressing this soon with Secretary Cardona to discuss how to get our kids back to school safely.

Cases among children are still rare, and severe cases among children are very, very rare.  But I know that parents are thinking about their own kids, and it’s not as reassuring as anyone would like it to be.

So let me say this as parents — to the parents:  As you have — you have the tools.  You have the tools to keep your child safer, and two of those tools, above all, are available to you.  One, make sure that everyone around your child, who can be vaccinated, is vaccinated: parents, adults, teens.  Two, make sure your child is masked when they leave home.  That’s how we can best keep our kids safe.

As I’ve said before, the pandemic of the unvaccinated is a tragedy that is preventable.  People are dying, and will die, who don’t have to.

So, please, please, if you haven’t gotten your vaccination — if you haven’t gotten vaccinated, do it now.  It could save your life and the lives of those you love.

Now, the good news is that people are getting vaccinated.  For the past several weeks, my administration has imposed new vaccine requirements on federal workers, the armed forces, people who work in federal medical facilities, and nursing home workers.  Governors, mayors, and private sector leaders have done the same. 

We’ve also encouraged new incentives.  For example, in some states, you get $100 if you get vaccinated.

These new requirements and incentives are accelerating vaccinations once again, giving us the hope that we can put this Delta variant behind us in the weeks ahead.

There are three facts everyone should know about where we are in this fight against this pandemic.

First, even as the Delta variant has ravaged the unvaccinated, the deaths have cli- — and deaths have climbed, the death rate is still 70 percent lower than what it was last winter.  Why?  Because we did such a good job vaccinating those most at risk: senior citizens.  America has about 54 million senior citizens.  About 50 million have at lea — have — have gotten at least one shot.  That’s almost 92 percent.

Secondly, overall weekly new vaccinations are up more than 56 percent from where they were a month ago.

Last week, we saw a record of vaccinations — more than 1 million shots a day for three state da- — for three straight days.  This is the first time this has happened since June.

Six million shots in the last seven days –- the highest seven-day total in over a month and a half

Remember — remember when we were trying to get 70 percent of the people over 18 at least one shot?  Well, we’ve not only gotten that done; we’ve gotten 71 percent of everyone age 12 and older their first shot.  That’s over 200 million Americans.  And over 170 million are now fully vaccinated. 

Third, states that had been lagging are seeing their vaccination rates grow faster.  In fact, in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, more people got new vaccinations in the past month than in the prior two months combined.

The progress we’re making on vaccinations now is going to produce results in the weeks ahead.  The sooner you get fully vaccinated, the sooner you’ll be protected.

According to the experts from the Yale School of Public Health, the pace of our vaccination effort has saved over 100,000 lives and have prevented more than 450,000 hospitalizations.  This is critical progress, but we need to move faster.

As I mentioned before, I’ve imposed vaccination requirements that will reach millions of Americans.

Today, I’m calling on more country — more companies, I should say, in the private sector to step up with vaccine requirements that’ll reach millions more people.

If you’re a business leader, a non-profit leader, a state or local leader who has been waiting for full FDA approval to require vaccinations, I call on you now to do that — require it.  Do what I did last month and require your employees to get vaccinated or face strict requirements.

And as I said last week, vaccination requirements have been around for decades.  Students, healthcare professionals, our troops are typically required to receive vaccination to prevent everything from polio to smallpox, measles, mumps, rubella.

In fact, the reason most people in America don’t worry about polio, smallpox, measles, mumps, and rubella today is because of vaccines.  It only makes sense to require a vaccine to stop the spread of COVID-19.

With today’s FDA full approval, there’s another good reason to get vaccinated.  So, please get vaccinated now.

If you go to Vaccines.com [Vaccines.gov] — Vaccines.com [Vaccines.gov] — or text your ZIP code to 438829 — 438829 — you can find a number of vaccine sites near you, just minutes away, where you can get your shot without an appointment.

All around the world, people want these vaccines.  Here in America, they’re free, convenient, and waiting for you. 

So, please go today — for yourself, for your loved ones, for your neighbors, for your country.

I’ll close with this: We’re in the midst of a wartime effort to beat this pandemic.  It’s one of the biggest and most complicated challenges in our history.  And it’s based on an unparalleled vaccination program that is saving lives and beating this virus.

It’s a vaccination program that’s getting us back to our loved ones and a way of life we were used to.  It’s happening, and it’s going to keep happening if you help — it helps our economy.  It gets everything moving.  It keeps us growing.

Together, we’ve made significant progress in just seven months.

We just have to finish the job with science, facts, and confidence, together — together as a United States of America.  So, please get vaccinated today.

God Bless you all.  And may God protect our troops.  Thank you.

2:08 P.M. EDT

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