Senate approves ending Covid emergency, 3 years after initial declaration

The Senate on Wednesday passed a bill that would end the national emergency by Covid declared by then-President Donald Trump on March 13, 2020, according to CNN.

The final vote was overwhelmingly bipartisan, 68-23. The joint resolution, which passed the House of Representatives earlier this year, now heads to the President's desk Joe Biden.

President Joe Biden said Wednesday he would sign the measure, according to The Hill, which reported what Senate Democratic Majority Leader Charles Schumer said to Democratic senators Wednesday.

“The President strongly opposes HJ Res 7, and the administration plans to end the COVID national emergency and public health emergency on May 11. However, if this bill reaches your desk, you will sign it and the administration will continue to work with agencies to end the national emergency with as much notice as possible to potentially affected Americans,” a White House official said.

The national emergency to which this bill refers is different from the public health emergency, although the White House reported that both will end on May 11. According to the By federal law, Congress has the power to call for periodic votes to end a national emergency.

The federal government's initial declaration of emergency allowed the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to mobilize personnel to support to state and local agencies as they worked to combat the coronavirus, and the move also allowed FEMA access to billions of dollars.

Ending the national emergency early could also end some of the flexibility that COBRA has been able to exercise.

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) of 1985 is a law passed by Congress on a settlement basis and signed by President Ronald Reagan that, among other things, requires an insurance program that provides some employees the ability to continue health insurance coverage after leaving employment.