Members of the Coronavirus Task Force, charged with leading the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic, are holding a briefing Monday at 5 p.m. The Trump administration continues to face criticism from the nation’s governors over shortfalls in testing capacity, though President Trump said Sunday he is preparing to invoke his authority under the Defense Production Act to boost production of the swabs used in the kits.
“You’ll have so many swabs you won’t know what to do with them,” Mr. Trump told reporters.
Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said on “Face the Nation” earlier Sunday the White House is approaching coronavirus testing on a “community by community” basis.
How to watch the Coronavirus Task Force briefing
Public health experts say more testing will be crucial as governors look to gradually restarting their economies. But Mr. Trump has defended the administration’s response to the coronavirus crisis and urged states to do more.
The U.S. is conducting 150,000 tests daily and has conducted 4 million tests overall, according to Vice President Mike Pence, who called on governors to activate all labs in their states ramp up testing as the country looks to a return to normalcy.
