By: Isabella Arbizo
Staff Writer
President Joe Biden on Thursday announced his administration would make “high-quality masks” available to Americans for free, as the US struggles to contain the new surge of the Omicron variant and hospitalizations from Covid-19 reach new highs. The President also announced his administration would purchase an additional 500 million Covid-19 tests — on top of the 500 million tests he previously announced — and said the website where Americans can go to get the free tests shipped to them will be rolled out next week. “I know we all wish could finally be done with wearing masks, I get it, but they are a really important tool to stop the spread, especially of the highly transmissible Omicron variant,” Biden said in remarks from the White House. He noted that for some Americans, “a mask is not always affordable or convenient to get,” and that his administration would announce more details about how it will distribute free masks next week. Some experts have said Americans should be wearing N95 and KN95 masks instead of cloth or surgical masks to avoid the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not changed its guidance on masking, but earlier this week White House Covid-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said the Biden administration was “strongly considering” making these higher quality masks more readily available to Americans. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday that the agency continues to recommend that “any mask is better than no mask,” and that Americans should wear a “well-fitting mask” to protect themselves and stop the spread of the virus.