President Joe Biden says the COVID-19 pandemic is "over," but his own administration clarified on Monday that it is not changing its response to the coronavirus.
Biden's comments came during a wide-ranging “60 Minutes” interview that aired Sunday night.
"The pandemic is over," Biden told interviewer Scott Pelley as the two walked through a public area and the president pointed out that no one was wearing a mask. "We still have a problem with COVID. We’re still doing a lot of work on it. It’s – but the pandemic is over.
Some in Biden's White House were caught off guard by the comments, CNN reported, citing two officials.
On Monday, a White House official told CNN that Biden's words do not indicate a change in policy toward the virus. There are no plans to lift the Public Health Emergency that began in January 2020 and is currently in effect through October 13, the official added.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its guidance on COVID-19 last month so that it no longer focuses on quarantines and social distancing, but on reducing severe disease from the virus. It still says that those who are at higher risk for serious illness may need to continue taking more precautions.
Biden's statement on the pandemic is not the only thing walked back by his administration. In the same interview, he again stated that the United States would defend Taiwan against an attack from China, which received an immediate response from the White House that America's "one China" policy has not changed, nor has its policy of “strategic ambiguity” on whether U.S. forces would defend. Taiwan.
The Taiwan Relations Act requires the U.S. to help equip Taiwan so that it can defend itself.
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