Today's COVID-19 White House Briefing Summarized

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Just a few hours ago, President Trump along with the Coronavirus Task Force gathered to provide the nation an update on the ongoing Coronavirus crisis.

We understand that it was a lot to take in, so to help out our fellow Americans understand what's happening, here's a summarized breakdown of the briefing.

No fake news. No bullshit.

UPDATE FROM PRESIDENT TRUMP

At the moment, the primary goal is to responsibly pull back on the recommended guidelines to open up certain sections of the country at a time, hopefully by Easter.
The first priority is The Health & Safety of the American People.

“Stay focused, stay strong, my administration and myself will continue to work for you as we have in the past.”

Critical Supplies & Preparations

FEMA has secured - 14m surgical masks - 8m N95 respirators - many millions more under order arriving soon
4,000 ventilators have been sent to sections of the countries that need it most, with an additional 4,000 being sent to NYC.
The federal government is taking advantage of every resource to acquire & distribute essential medical supplies.
The Defense Production Act has not needed to be activated. All companies are working with the government.

Medical Facilities & New Hospitals

4 temporary hospitals are being built in NYC and an additional 4 will be built in other parts of New York.
Naval hospital ships will be deployed to the New York Harbor & Los Angeles once the maintenance on the ships has been completed.
Other temporary hospitals & medical facilities will be built in LA, WA, & NJ.

Financial Package & Economy

The biggest financial relief package in American history is being developed, totaling $2 trillion. This package includes:

"Bridge Loans" totaling in the billions will be offered to airline & cruise ship industries.
Job retention loans for qualifying small businesses
Unemployment insurance extensions

The DOW surged 2,000 points today; the biggest in American history.
A squad of professional public health experts & economists are currently working developing a strategic plan to rebuild the economy.

Other Updates

The President is hoping to have parts of America working by Easter.

“This is a medical crisis, not a financial crisis, but it is something that nobody has seen for many many decades”

The American future from here on out is to have American medicine for American patients; American supplies for American hospitals; American equipment for our great American heroes.

“We should never be reliant on a foreign country for the means of our own survival... This experience shows how important borders are. Without borders, you don’t have a nation.”

The President also made it clear that Republicans & Democrats must unite to make the country truly independent in all aspects; economic, manufacturing, energy, & territorial via impenetrable, sovereign borders.

“We will embrace commerce by all, but we will be dependent on none. Above all, we know that the best thing for our economy and the world right now is a very very powerful victory over the virus”

UPDATE FROM DEBORAH L. BIRX (American Physician)

The government is accelerating testing at record rates. 370,000 tests have been completed, and 120,000 of those tests were over the past 8 days.
She urged those who are not showing symptoms to not get tested in order to free up testing space for those who are showing symptoms.
The government is currently working on providing at-home sample kits to be sent into laboratories. This will save medical equipment & PPE for those who truly need it.
Italy has recently reported a decreased rate of morality & new infections.
American cases will appear as though they are surging until the backlogs of cases are brought up to speed and we can on a 24 hour reporting cycle. The current numbers do not reflect what the current situation.
At the moment, 56% of all US COVID-19 cases are from the Metro NYC area. Birx urged anyone who has left that area in the last 14 days to self-quarantine to prevent the spread of the virus.

UPDATE FROM DR. FAUCI (Immunologist)

The plan is to act according to policy according to accurate data.
Sections of the United States that are not currently hotspots still have the opportunity to contain spread in their area.
He also urged all Americans to adhere to the Presidential Guidelines, repeating Birx's urgency to self-quarantine.

Updates on a Cure

Clinical trials are being conducted on willing candidates.
These studies will determine if any of the proposed cures and/or treatments are effective and safe, and more studies are being created.

UPDATE FROM LARRY KUDLOW (Director of the USA Economic Council)

This legislation is urgently needed to bolster the economy and stabilize markets to not only get us through a difficult period in the economy, but also to position us for an economic rebound later this year... This package will be the single largest mainstreet assistance program in the history of the US”

Student loans & income tax deferrals will not come with any interest
The emergency fund the government is tapping into will be replenished & overseen by a board & inspector general. It will be 100% transparent
The package consists of $2 trillion of direct assistance & $4 trillion in federal reserve lending power, totaling $6 trillion.

UPDATES FROM VP MIKE PENCE

"If every american follow these outlines, wherever you are, we can significantly reduce the number of Americans that would contract & protect the most vulnerable."

The 2 primary focuses of the Coronavirus Task Force are:

Slow the spread by following the Presidential Guidelines
Providing more rapid testing & ample supplies by establishing private partnerships with private labs.

The main focus is Metro NYC. Currently, 60% of all United States cases come from this area with a 10x higher infection rate than anywhere else in the country.
Surge resources are being sent to New York City including the USS Comfort to provide additional healthcare & beds.
He stated that we can re-open the country in weeks, not months, if every American follows the "15 Days to Slow the Spread" guidelines.

“We’re with you. We're going to continue to provide resources to support state and local issues as they confront the spread of the Coronavirus in this great city”