President Biden Announces New "Test-to-Treat" COVID-19 Plan

As the situation with COVID-19 continues to change and develop, AllEars will be bringing you the latest relevant news that could affect a theme park visit.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought on massive changes to the Disney and Universal theme parks as well as to people’s daily lives all over the world. Now, it looks like a new phase of recovery is beginning in the US, starting today.

Former Mask Signage in Disney World

President Biden gave his State of the Union Address on Tuesday, March 1st, 2022. He took part of this time to introduce a new initiative for the next phase of COVID-19 recovery in America. We’re taking a look at the new measures, which could mean a simpler and faster solution to positive coronavirus tests.

The New York Times reported that President Biden is ushering in a “new normal” in which most people can return to their routines with school, work, and other activities with minimal disruptions from the pandemic. The next phase of pandemic response is being called the “test to treat initiative,” and it involves patients receiving new antiviral pills immediately upon testing positive for COVID-19.

©New York Times

This new response is focused on “developing new vaccines and therapeutics” as well as planning for “how to keep schools and businesses open even if the pandemic takes a turn for the worse” (New York Times). President Biden said it was essentially a plan for returning to a place where “the virus will no longer disrupt everyday life, and Americans will learn to live with it.”

COVID sign in Disney Springs

With “test to treat,” Americans will be able to visit places like Walgreens, CVS, or Kroger to be tested for COVID-19, and if they test positive, they will immediately receive antiviral pills for free.

©CNBC

These pills (made by Pfizer) have been pretty rare since they were developed and authorized by the FDA in 2021, but President Biden has said that many more are going to be produced soon. The White House announced that this program (including the free pills for those who test positive) would begin this month.

Former Face Mask Signage in Disney World

Other aspects of the new program include public education about new antiviral treatments, stronger air filtration systems in public buildings, and billions of dollars of research. Antiviral pills will be sent to long-term care facilities as well.

Face masks aren’t a big part of the new plan.

The official title for this plan is “Getting to and Sustaining the Next Normal: A Road Map for Living With Covid.” This plan also draws from the recent recommendations from the CDC, which rely on hospitalizations rather than case counts as a measure of COVID-19 prevalence in certain areas. Under the new recommendations, about 70% of Americans do not need to wear masks, socially distance from others, or avoid crowded indoor areas.

Under the new recommendations, most Americans don’t need to wear masks.

Theme parks like Disney World, Disneyland, and Universal have already taken steps to ease face mask mandates for guests. The new direction announced by President Biden indicates that these relaxed measures could be here to stay for the time being.