STATEMENT FROM GOVERNOR PHIL SCOTT ON EXPANDING ACCESS TO COVID-19 RAPID TESTS

For Immediate Release
Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Contacts
Jason Maulucci, Press Secretary
Office of the Governor
[email protected]

STATEMENT FROM GOVERNOR PHIL SCOTT ON EXPANDING ACCESS TO COVID-19 RAPID TESTS

Montpelier, Vt. – Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement regarding the Biden Administration’s plan to invest billions to expand rapid at-home COVID-19 tests for Americans:

“Increasing access to rapid at-home testing will be important as we continue moving forward and I applaud the President’s focus on this important tool.

“The introduction of highly effective vaccines, boosters and early treatment options has significantly lowered the risk for everyone, but especially the older, medically vulnerable population most at-risk. As a result, we are able to return to more normal activities and begin to address the consequences of the most aggressive COVID-19 mitigation measures. These consequences like increasing hospitalization for significant non-covid illnesses, increasing mental healthcare needs, rising substance use, overdoses and domestic violence, and the economic insecurity of many families and employers. The science tells us that as we move forward, COVID-19 will continue to circulate like other viruses. As America navigates that transition from pandemic to endemic, expanding access to rapid testing will change the game, giving us another, far faster and more convenient tool we can use at home to help the country moving forward.

“Vermont and our neighbors in New England have proven the power of vaccines and the importance of robust testing. I look forward to learning more about the federal initiatives and working together with the President and his team to lead the way forward.”

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