The US President, Joe Bidenreappeared this Wednesday before the public after overcoming COVID-19 and took the opportunity to encourage Americans to get vaccinated and get booster doses, at a time when the BA.5 variant has caused an increase in infections.
Biden made a no-questions-asked statement on the White House lawn after testing negative for COVID-19 and completing his five days of isolation.
“My symptoms were mild. Recovery was quick and I feel good. During the entire time that I was in isolation, I was able to work, to carry out the tasks of my position without any interruption, and that is testimony to where we are in the battle against COVID-19”, proclaimed the president.
Biden took the opportunity to boast of his achievements in the fight against the pandemic since he arrived at the White House in January 2021: Americans now have access to vaccines and booster doses, they can receive free COVID-19 tests by mail and they have available treatments, such as the oral antiretroviral drug Paxlovid.
Biden himself, 79 years old and who has received two doses of the vaccine and another two boosters, took that anticovid pill, manufactured by Pfizer, to recover from the disease.
Because of my Administration’s investment in free booster shots, at-home tests, and effective treatments, today, we can protect ourselves from serious illness and prevent most COVID deaths.
COVID is still with us, but our fight against it is stronger than ever. pic.twitter.com/24toy7NiGR
— President Biden (@POTUS) July 27, 2022
To highlight the achievements of his administration, Biden recalled that when his predecessor, Donald Trump (2017-2021), was infected with the coronavirus, he had to leave the White House by helicopter and receive treatment at the Walter Reed military hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. ), where he was hospitalized for three days.
“He was seriously ill. Fortunately, he recovered. When I contracted COVID-19, I was able to work from the first floor of the White House, in the offices that are up there,” Biden said.
The difference between his convalescence and Trump’s, he insisted, is the vaccines, the treatments and the tests to detect the virus.
Lastly, Biden alluded to the BA.5 subvariant of Ómicron, “very contagious” and responsible for 82% of COVID-19 infections in the United States, according to Tuesday data from the government Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). , in English).
Coinciding with the expansion of this subvariant in the US, infections have increased. Specifically, between June 25 and July 25, cases increased by an average of 4% across the country with higher spikes in infections in some states such as North Dakota and Georgia, according to the CDC.
In the United States, where vaccines are free, only 67.2% of the population have received two doses, while 48.2% have received a booster dose.
