Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy speaks on the spread of vaccine misinformation and Press Secretary Jen Psaki on US inflation and Biden’s child tax plan. Anoosha Murtaza reports on the key takeaways from the White House Press Briefing on July 15, 2021.
1. The White House is Working Ardently to Combat Misinformation Regarding the Covid Vaccine
Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy was invited to speak at today’s press briefing on the spread of misinformation through individuals and social media regarding the safety and effectiveness of the Covid vaccine.
He discussed how dangerous it is for popular social media outlets such as Facebook to allow disinformation to be spread on their platform. Dr. Murthy cited misinformation spread on the internet to be one of the biggest reasons why most people refuse to get vaccinated. He stated that it is vital to combat these false messages in order to beat the pandemic.
On multiple occasions, Dr. Murthy also stated that every Covid-related death we are seeing now can be avoided if the general population agrees to get vaccinated.
“On a personal note, it’s painful for me to know that nearly every death we are seeing now from COVID-19 could have been prevented. I see that as someone who has lost 10 family members to COVID-19 and who wishes, each and every day that they had had the opportunity to get vaccinated.”
Dr. Murthy not only raised awareness towards individuals who believe in these false convictions about the vaccine and pleaded them to get vaccinated but also targeted social media companies and individuals with a large platform to use their tools wisely and fight against the popular Covid vaccine myths.
2. Inflation Has Increased, but the White House Promises a Decline by Next Year
Press Secretary Jen Psaki confirmed that inflation has risen in the past year. She cites the reason as the pandemic, in which the economy shut down and restarted. She said that because of the re-opening of businesses such as hotels, restaurants, and stores.
However, Psaki stated that many economic experts expect the inflation rate to decline by next year. Once the economy is in motion again and businesses are performing, as usual, the supply and demand rates will match the rate of the economy, and inflation will drop. Psaki said the most important thing for businesses and the inflation rate right now is for consumers to be actively buying and participating in the economy.
When asked if it was possible for inflation to keep rising, Psaki said possibly, but many experts are saying that the market and economy are becoming more stimulated as the pandemic ends, which will lead to a decline in inflation. Hospitality businesses such as hotels and restaurants are getting more business and as demand goes up, the price will become more suitable for the general public.
3. Biden Administration States Child Tax Credit Payments Will be Distributed
Press Secretary Psaki stated that $15 billion in child tax credit payments were distributed 10s of millions of families, covering 60 million children working families will receive these payments on the 15th of every single month for the next year thanks to the American rescue plan.
86% of American families will receive their payment by direct deposit, it will show up in their bank accounts as child CTC, others will receive their check in the mail today or in the next few days.
She continued to say, “this is a historic increase that will provide middle-class families with critical tax relief, and many projects, it will help cut the child poverty rate in half.”