If you’ve tried to get an at home Covid test you know it isn’t easy. Anecdotally, we’ve seen prices go way up. Why? Where are the tests Biden promised? Is the shortage happening because that same take home test is available at testing centers where they can enter your information into a database?
I don’t know, maybe it’s just a promise to get everyone home tests that team Biden is failing at again. What’s crazy is Americans waiting for hours in some cases just to get a test to go about their daily lives. And for a lot of Americans that’s not working. The Biden administration is trying to control both the supply and demand side of the market for at home COVID tests.
By mandating testing for certain people (unvaccinated federal employees, airline passengers, etc.) Biden is creating the demand. He’s also now injecting the government into the supply chain by scooping up at home tests to send to Americans whether they need them or not. This is a classic failure of “command” economics.
Recently on Fox News, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida took Biden to task for his failed promises. Bailee Hill reports:
The Biden administration announced they would distribute 500 million at-home COVID-19 tests for free, although this move is still likely days and potentially weeks away from coming into fruition.
Some experts are also concerned 500 million tests would still not be enough amid the surge in cases.
“His promise was he would shut down the virus, and he’d demagogue Donald Trump every day,” DeSantis said. “He blamed Trump for COVID cases and deaths. He didn’t blame China, which is really where the blame belongs.”
“But he said it was all Trump’s fault, and then he would shut it down, and not only has he not shut it down, you have cases and hospitalizations in parts of the country like we’ve never seen before, so that fundamental promise he made to the American people, he has absolutely failed,” he continued.
Earlier this week, Jen Psaki denied claims the Biden administration has “lost control” of the pandemic, despite a spike in cases, mass school closures, and a fairly widespread testing shortage. Biden faced criticism this week for telling Americans to Google for the nearest locations to get tested.
Action Line: Some states have gone down the rabbit hole on trying to control their COVID-19 economies, regulating everything from hours businesses can be open to who must test and when. Every one of their actions has ramifications for the economy. If your politicians are using COVID-19 as an excuse to control everything you do, it’s time to look for a better America.
