White House to release strategy on easing COVID-19 restrictions

On Wednesday, the Biden administration is set to publish plans and guidance about how various states and localities can formally transition back to normalcy.

The new strategy is reportedly set to come the day after President Joe Biden is expected to declare a new era of optimism for the COVID-19 pandemic during his State of the Union address on Tuesday night.

POLITICO cited an internal COVID-19 strategy document from the US government when reporting on the matter. While some of the focus of it is on how to phase out any lingering pandemic restrictions, another portion of the guidance talks about what to do if COVID-19 resurges again in the future.

During the State of the Union address, Biden is likely to echo that theme and tone. He's also likely to appeal to Congress for their approval of long-term funding for vaccines and other pandemic-related items as a means of insurance for America's immediate future in terms of COVID-19 pandemic response.

The previous messaging from the White House earlier this month when it came to issues like mask mandates for schools was that federal guidance took top priority. It also meant weeks of litigation for Democratic strongholds such as New York where leaders fought to keep masks in play.

That is until recently. Within the last week, states like New York and Maryland have finally gotten rid of their rule requiring masks in schools.

Reports about the change in White House messaging about the COVID-19 threat began coming out around the same time. The shift in policy means officials will begin claiming the pandemic threat has finally died down.

It was back on Sunday that Congress dropped their mask mandate. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told the media that she'd not be wearing a mask when Biden delivers his speech later on Tuesday.