The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention created guidance for states and localities on how to handle the anticipated resurgence of coronavirus cases once those areas re-open. The Trump White House blocked its release.
The guidance, as the Associated Press reports, “offered recommendations to help communities decide when to shut facilities down again during future flareups of COVID-19.”
It also calls for a “coordinated national response” to re-opening to “help Americans re-enter civic life,” and gave this warning: “Coordination across state and local jurisdictions is critical.”
The Trump White House, with an ever-growing focus on re-opening immediately nationwide, is opposed to those policies.
The White House also altered recommendations made by CDC epidemiologists to make them less stringent.
For example, the White House’s plan advises in phase 2 of re-opening that non-essential travel can be resumed after 28 days. The CDC plan calls for mere “consideration” of non-essential travel resumption in phase 2, and only after 42 days.
The AP report comes one week after revealing the CDC had also developed guidelines to help restaurants, stores, houses of worship, and other businesses re-open safely. The Trump White House banned its release.
After the AP’s report the White House claimed the documents it blocked were drafts and not approved for release. But the AP obtained emails revealing CDC Director Robert Redfield had approved the documents.
The White House subsequently said it would allow portions to be released. It has not.
On Tuesday U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) blasted Director Redfield for the delay.
Redfield told Murphy the guidance would be available “soon.”
“‘Soon’ isn’t terribly helpful,” Sen. Murphy replied.