Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra pressed for lawmakers to quickly take up $10 billion in COVID-19 relief as soon as they return from a two-week recess.
“Failure is not an option here,” Becerra said during a joint press conference Thursday with World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “I have faith that Congress will do what it must. I just hope that faith is rewarded quickly, because every time we delay is a step further back.”
Congress left town Thursday for a two-week recess without voting on a $10 billion deal that gives HHS money to buy in advance therapeutics, tests and vaccines. But the package does not include new money for global aid relief or new funding to reimburse providers for uninsured COVID-19 testing, treatment and vaccine administration claims.
That package stalled in the Senate due to a disagreement over a process for voting on amendments.
“The reality is there is real support for the covid bill on both sides of the aisle and there needs to be opportunities for amendments from both sides of the aisle,” Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, told Fierce Healthcare on Thursday. “If [Senate Majority Leader Chuck] Schumer won’t allow that to happen, then we will put the health of the American people in jeopardy because of politics.”
Becerra said that he has been clear to Congress about the impact of holding off on approving more COVID-19 aid.
He said the agency cannot make advance purchases of products “in the bulk sums we have had in the past.”
HHS cut off reimbursing providers for uninsured COVID-19 testing and treatment claims March 22 and vaccine administration claims for the uninsured on Tuesday.
Becerra added the administration’s strategy of “test and treat,” where if you test positive you get treated, is in jeopardy, as well as the continued purchasing of N-95 masks.
“All of these things are hitting us,” he said. “Even though we have some money we are not able to do the forecasting and early investment that we did before.”
Adhanom Ghebreyesus added that he does believe Congress will take the need for more relief seriously and that U.S. leadership motivates other countries.
Becerra also hinted there could be future battles ahead for more relief.
While Becerra was grateful for the $10 billion, he said, "significantly more is needed to fund both our domestic response and our global response. This virus knows no borders, and it is in our national interest to vaccinate the world and protect against future variants.”
It remains unclear whether Congress will have the appetite to approve more relief. Democrats were able to cut a deal for the $10 billion by offsetting the new funding with cuts to other COVID-19 relief programs.