President-elect Joe Biden plans to present his $1.9 trillion plan for economic relief and stepped-up coronavirus vaccinations to the nation on Thursday evening. It includes $1,400 stimulus payments to Americans, on top of the $600 approved by Congress last month, the Hill reports. The package devotes $415 billion to the health care side of the pandemic, $20 billion of which would establish community vaccination centers as part of a national vaccination program, with the goal of speeding up innoculations. "This reflects our assessment of the immediate need for the immediate crisis recovery," a Biden official said. "This should be understood as the first step." Biden will announce his American Rescue Plan in a speech in Wilmington, Delaware.
For the first time since 2009, the federal minimum wage would rise. The plan calls for incremental increases to $15 an hour. There's more funding for rentors' assistance, child care, and nutrition programs. Tribal governments would receive money to deal with the pandemic, per NPR. There's also $130 billion to help schools reopen safely. The closing of schools has made it tougher for many families during the pandemic, and Biden wants to make it possible for other parts of the economy to reopen as well. The president-elect will ask Congress to approve his plan quickly, the official said, and then will unveil another economic recovery package next month. Biden takes office next week. (More Joe Biden stories.)
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