NEW YORK, January 15. /TASS/. US President-elect Joseph Biden is proposing to allocate about $1.9 trillion for measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, stimulate the US economy and provide relief to the population, the plan was published on Thursday.
The document stated that the specified package of measures will help save the US economy and begin to defeat the virus. It was noted that the plan was ambitious but feasible.
About $400 bln of the $1.9 trillion is expected to be allocated directly to the fight against the pandemic. About $1 trillion should be directed to providing assistance to the population, the rest - to stimulate the economy.
According to the plan, direct monthly payments to Americans will increase to $2,000. The document contains a call to raise the minimum hourly wage in the country to $15 and introduce additional benefits.
The president-elect also proposes to provide $350 bln to local authorities to close the existing budget deficit. It includes allocating $15 bln for loans to small businesses.
Biden considers it necessary, in particular, to allocate $50 bln to expand testing programs for coronavirus, $130 bln, according to the Democrat, should be allocated to support the safe reopening of schools in the country. Biden proposed to allocate $20 bln to fund a vaccination program against coronavirus.
Food and Drug Administration in December 2020 approved coronavirus vaccine developed by the American company Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech. The vaccine produced by US company Moderna was also certified.
According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 23.2 mln coronavirus cases have been identified in the United States, and over 386,900 people have died. The country ranks first in the world for both indicators.