Whereas, On June 20, 2020, during his campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, President Donald Trump told his supporters that he had directed his people to “slow the [COVID-19] testing down, please.” He described testing as a “double-edged sword,” and said, “When you do testing to that extent, you’re going to find more people, you’re going to find more cases.”; and
Whereas, COVID-19 continues to be a substantial threat to public health in Michigan and across the nation. Testing reveals that new cases have been increasing in nearly half of states throughout the month of June. On June 20, 2020, eight states reported their highest ever numbers of new COVID-19 case counts; and
Whereas, Slowing down the rate of testing would leave public health officials in the dark about what steps need to be taken to protect residents. The state of Michigan, like most other states, considers the numbers and trends of new cases and the percent of positive tests as key indicators of how well the state is tracking and containing the spread of COVID-19; and
Whereas, Slowing down the rate of testing would also leave the American public in the dark about the level of risk from COVID-19. Testing provides vital information about the prevalence of COVID-19 in a community, allowing individuals to make informed personal decisions to protect themselves. It increases compliance with voluntary and mandatory measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 that benefit everyone; and
Whereas, Decreasing access to COVID-19 testing puts Americans at risk and could create shortages of testing supplies for states. Testing allows states to direct resources to areas that need them most to contain COVID-19 cases before the rate of disease spread becomes unmanageable. It is a critical tool that saves lives and helps protect all citizens but particularly our most vulnerable citizens living in nursing homes and other high-risk environments who have limited freedom to protect themselves; and
Whereas, President Trump’s statements and actions are reckless and dangerous. COVID-19 remains a substantial threat to the health of the American public with tens of thousands of new cases still being reported in the U.S. each day. COVID-19 will not go away simply because we choose to look the other way or actively attempt, like some other countries, to prevent our citizens from knowing the truth about the extent of its impact; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate, That we denounce the decision of the President of the United States to slow COVID-19 testing; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States.
The question being on the adoption of the substitute,
Senator Chang requested the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered, 1/5 of the members present voting therefor.
The substitute (S-2) was not adopted, a majority of the members serving not voting therefor, as follows: