On Monday, President Joe Biden announced that he will launch a U.S. government initiative for discrimination against persons with long-term COVID-19 symptoms.
This effort will see U.S. agencies come together to help people with severe long-term health issues even after they have recovered from their infection with the novel coronavirus.
Biden stated that many Americans, even those who seem to have recovered from the virus, still face challenges such as chronic pain, breathing problems and fatigue. These conditions can sometimes lead to a disability.
Biden spoke at the Rose Garden event to celebrate the 31st anniversary the enactment the Americans with Disabilities Act. This landmark U.S. law was designed to prohibit discrimination against persons with disabilities.
This new initiative will ensure that people suffering from COVID-19 long-term symptoms have “access to the rights, resources and benefits that are due under disability law.”
This could mean that new accommodations are required for people with disabilities in restaurants, schools, and at work. The White House didn’t immediately give any additional information about the program.
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This effort is necessary because the rapid-spreading Delta variant of the pandemic and slow uptake vaccines have threatened to derail government efforts to contain it.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention average for seven days, more than 47,000 COVID-19 cases are now being reported per day. This is far less than the peak of over 200,000 at the start of the year, but almost triple that of one month ago.