President Biden issued a raft of executive orders Thursday to drastically expand the federal response to the pandemic and ramp up production of coronavirus vaccines amid shortages of shots in dozens of states, including New York.
Marking his first full day as president, Biden signed the 10 executive actions as part of an unveiling of his administration’s national COVID-19 response strategy, which touches on everything from face-mask mandates and school reopenings to travel restrictions and transparency efforts.
“Our national plan launches a full-scale wartime effort,” Biden said in the State Dining Room of the White House. “As I said last night, 400,000 Americans have died. That’s more than that died in all of World War II ... This is a wartime undertaking.”
One of Biden’s most significant orders instructs his cabinet agencies to invoke the Defense Production Act as needed to ramp up production of medical equipment and materials that are in increasingly short supply, like syringes and glass vials, causing a slowdown in vaccinations across the country.
Former President Donald Trump was reluctant to use the DPA, which dates back to the Korean War and allows the federal government to order private companies to boost manufacturing as necessary in case of an emergency.
Instead, Trump largely punted vaccination efforts, saying it’s “up to the states.”
Biden blamed Trump’s hands-off approach for the slow pace of vaccinations in the U.S.
“The rollout has been a dismal failure thus far,” Biden said. “So, I understand the despair and frustration of so many Americans ... 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.”
In New York, supplies are running so short that the city had to cancel at least 23,000 vaccine appointments this week.
Mayor de Blasio welcomed the news that Biden would be using the DPA, calling it “the most muscular possible approach to maximize the amount of supply.”
“Thank God he is invoking the Defense Production Act,” de Blasio said. “That’s what we need.”
Nationwide, fewer than 18 million shots have been administered since the vaccination campaign began in mid-December, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Biden has pledged that the U.S. will administer 100 million more shots in his first 100 days in office.
Since the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines approved for use both require two shots for effectiveness, that translates into 50 million individual inoculations.
Some medical experts say Biden’s goal is not ambitious enough — but the new president bristled at a reporter who asked whether he should raise the bar.
“When I announced it, you all said that it’s not possible. Come on. Give me a break, man. It’s a good start — 100 million,” he said.
An aspect of Biden’s national strategy is to regain “public trust” by being more transparent about the government’s efforts to combat the pandemic.
Biden was joined for the executive-order signing ceremony by Vice President Kamala Harris and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert.
Again seeking to distinguish himself from Trump, Biden said the American people will “hear a lot more from Dr. Fauci again, not from the president.”
Speaking at a White House press briefing later in the day, Fauci acknowledged that he believes Biden is putting the nation back on the right track.
“It is somewhat of a liberating feeling,” Fauci told reporters.
Biden also ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency and National Guard to play larger roles in administering doses, and state governments will be fully reimbursed for costs associated with vaccinations. A FEMA liaison will be dispatched to every state to ensure a smooth partnership, Biden said.
Beyond vaccinations, Biden inked an executive order requiring all international travelers arriving in the U.S. to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival. The same order requires international and interstate travelers to wear face masks on planes, trains, buses and other modes of public transportation.
Biden also issued decrees aimed at expanding coronavirus testing and tracing as well as orders to boost production of personal protective equipment like N95 masks.
Pivoting to education, Biden issued directives for his administration to work with states in devising plans for safely reopening schools, with a focus on small class sizes.
Biden acknowledged that his executive authority only extends so far and that Congress will need to help him achieve some of his most ambitious goals, especially on the vaccination front.
On that point, Biden renewed his call for Congress to quickly approve his proposed $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus package, which earmarks more than $400 billion for increased vaccine production and administration.
“I know these bold practical steps will not come cheaply,” Biden said, “but failing to do so will cost us so much more dearly.”