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Biden promises 500M Covid test kits but yet to sign contract: 'Delusion your best friend'

Biden criticized his administration's own handling of the pandemic, admitting the response hasn't been 'good enough'

President Joe Biden may have promised to deliver 500 million Covid tests to the people of the United States in the light of the Omicron variant looking to become the dominant strain in the world, he is yet to sign a contract to buy them or set up a website so that people can place orders. 

"That's not a plan - it's a hope," Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told The New York Times. "If those tests came in January and February, that could have an impact, but if they are spread out over 10 to 12 months, I'm not sure what kind of impact it is going to have." Information about how many tests are immediately available or how quickly they can be shipped out to American homes is unknown. Because of the surging demand, retailers like Amazon, Walgreens, and CVS have already imposed limits this week on how many tests each customer can buy.

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In an interview with ABC's David Muir, the POTUS criticized his administration's own handling of the pandemic, admitting the response hasn't been "good enough." Biden expressed some regret about not ordering the at-home tests sooner. "I wish I had thought about ordering' 500 million at-home tests two months ago," he told Muir. Back in July, the president told the country that in the fight against COVID, great feats had been achieved. In the interview, he said that he did not regret those comments he had made earlier. "How are we going to do this? Are we certainly going to be able to overcome the Delta - excuse me, the virus, COVID-19? The answer is: the expectation is yes, because we have the best scientists in the world. We move so rapidly compared to other countries. But we don't know, we don't know for certain, so that's why," he said. 

'Delusion is your best friend'

Biden's promise of delivering 500 million tests without having any concrete plan in place to do so was criticized on social media. "When you live in a dream, delusion is your best friend," one user wrote, while another said, "Who is Biden sending the 500 million home Covid test to, when the population of the US is just under 334 million?" A third noted, "I thought he had a plan? #Omicron" The next remarked, "One year in and they still have no idea what they’re doing, just flailing randomly in hopes Covid will magically disappear." One more said, "More promises of 'FREE STUFF' yet again by WH Am Track Conductor ?" A commenter tweeted, "President Biden is incompetent. Continuing to contradict himself about covid and Omaricon, did he say half a million test kits or 500 million. Jesus I regret voting for this fool. The doctor warned more was to come as in another variant months ago so be prepared."

Fauci: 'We're dealing with a serious enough situation now'

The backlash against Biden's lack of planning comes amid warnings from experts that the virus could infect 140 million people between January and March. Omicron cases have increased by 19 percent day-over-day cases -- so much co that the new variant now accounts for 73 percent of new cases in the US. Even as Europe braces for a string of new lockdowns, Biden has vowed to avoid lockdowns. 

Meanwhile, Dr Anthony Fauci has urged Americans to disinvite unvaccinated people from Christmas gatherings. "We're dealing with a serious enough situation now that if there's an unvaccinated person, I would say, 'I'm very sorry, but not this time. Maybe another time when this is all over,'" said Fauci in an interview with MSNBC on Tuesday night.