The House Speaker's announcement came after a report that the White House rejected a detailed plan from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on how to reopen the country safely amid the pandemic.
As dozens of states begin to reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic although they have not met benchmarks laid out by the Trump Administration, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for a set of federal standards that would regulate how the country gradually returns to business as usual.
And officials on the president's coronavirus task force, such as Drs. Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx, have warned of the consequences if states lift restrictions prematurely. But the health experts and White House officials have stated the guidelines are designed to provide leeway and flexibility to states.
The White House criteria give broad discretion to governors and includes four standards states should meet before health officials say it's safe to enter Phase 1 of reopening businesses: a decline in new cases for 14 days, enough resources to conduct contract tracing on all new cases, enough tests for residents with symptoms and the health care capacity to treat the infected. Many Democrats, health experts and even the White House guidelines suggest the U.S.
But President Donald Trump has relaxed his position on urging states to follow the White House guidelines. He acknowledged to ABC News this week that"it's possible there will be some" deaths due to premature reopenings. But, he added,"we have to get our country back. People are dying the other way, too."
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