Finance
The United States Senate has passed legislation to end the national Covid-19 emergency declared by former President Donald Trump on March 13, 2020.
According to CNN, the 68-23 vote on Wednesday was overwhelmingly bipartisan, and the joint resolution, which passed the House earlier this year, now goes to President Joe Biden.
According to a White House official, while the President “strongly opposes” the bill, the administration is already working to end the emergency by May 11, the previously announced deadline.
“If the Senate passed the measure and it heads to Biden’s desk, he will sign it, and the administration will continue working with agencies to wind down the national emergency with as much notice as possible to Americans who could potentially be impacted,” the official was quoted as saying.
In January, the White House stated that Biden “strongly opposes” the Republican resolution to end the Covid-19 emergency, but did not threaten a veto.
When the bill was brought to the House floor in February, Democrats overwhelmingly opposed it, with the exception of 11 Democrats who joined Republicans in support.
The United States remains the worst-affected country by the Covid pandemic, with the highest number of cases and fatalities.
The country’s caseload and death toll stood at 106,163,408 and 1,154,353, respectively, as of Thursday morning.
Source:IANS
