Biden Briefed In October On Need To Ramp Up Rapid Testing

Laura Coates Live

CNN

News

4.2 • 2.5K Ratings

🗓️ 24 December 2021

⏱️ 43 minutes

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Summary

With the Omicron variant rapidly spreading and not nearly enough testing to meet the massive demand, a new report from "Vanity Fair" suggests the Biden administration dismissed a plan from experts to ramp up rapid testing months ago. But is that what really happened? Dr Michael Mina, who attended White House meeting where the proposal was made, joins to give his perspective.

Also tonight: former police officer Kim Potter is found guilty of manslaughter in the death of Daunte Wright, Philadelphia faces a prosecutor shortage as hundreds leave the D.A.'s Office amid a record murder rate and as Trump pushes back on vaccine conspiracies, will his supporter base follow him?

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Transcript

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0:00.0	The news continues, so let's hand it over to Michael Smirconish and CNN tonight.
0:06.2	John, thank you.
0:07.2	I am Michael Smirconish.
0:08.2	Welcome to CNN Tonight.
0:09.9	On this eve of Christmas eve with Omicron spreading far and wide and not nearly enough
0:14.7	testing to meet the massive demand, a new report from Vanity Fair suggests the Biden
0:19.9	administration dismissed a bold plan months ago to ramp up rapid testing ahead of the holidays.
0:25.8	It's been characterized by the magazine as a blueprint for how to avoid what is happening
0:30.3	at this very moment, meaning the scramble nationwide to get a COVID test nearly two years
0:35.6	into this pandemic, endless lines, hours of people waiting so that they can celebrate Christmas
0:40.4	safely with others.
0:42.4	But is that what really happened?
0:44.1	The White House says they didn't dismiss anything.
0:46.8	We're about to talk to a doctor who attended the White House meeting where that very proposal
0:51.1	was made on October 22nd.
0:53.7	Vanity Fair says it got hold of the 10-page plan that included a testing surge to prevent
0:58.6	holiday COVID surge.
1:00.6	The idea was to push the administration to get out rapid home COVID testing to Americans
1:05.9	so that they could screen themselves and reduce transmission before the holidays.
1:10.8	The proposal purportedly called for an estimated 732 million tests per month, a number that
1:16.8	would require a major ramp up of manufacturing capacity, but that didn't happen, not at
1:22.2	that scale.
	...

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