Trump’s speech last night seemed to confirm fears that that have festered among health experts for weeks, as the administration struggled to roll out coronavirus testing and coordinate with frontline providers
Yet Trump insisted that the risk remains “very, very low” for most people, focusing almost exclusively on efforts to keep out foreign travelers — a measure the World Health Organization has long warned could ultimately do far more economic and social damage than good.
The administration’s top infectious disease official, Anthony Fauci, backed Trump’s travel restrictions on Thursday as a move that could help slow the virus’ spread. Health insurers, which met with Trump just days ago, scrambled to rebut Trump’s claims that plans would cover coronavirus treatments at no cost, clarifying that they only committed eliminate out-of-pocket costs for testing. Insurers will cover coronavirus care, but have not yet committed to waiving costs for treatment.
The administration also later had to walk back Trump’s assertion that his new travel bans would also affect cargo coming from 26 European countries — a move that could have disrupted key elements of the pharmaceutical supply chain and thrown up new barriers to testing. At least two test kit companies are based in European countries.
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