On Friday, HHS Secretary Alex Azar issued the following statement regarding President Trump’s declaration that the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States represents a national emergency:

“President Trump continues to take smart, aggressive, and comprehensive steps to protect the American people from the threat of COVID-19. His travel restrictions worked at slowing the spread of the virus to the United States. We have always expected, publicly predicted, and prepared for, more cases. The President’s declaration gives HHS important powers to enhance state and local communities’ ability to respond to the outbreak, including flexibility around Medicare and Medicaid rules. The entire Trump administration, including our leaders at HHS, is identifying every flexibility we can offer and any obstacle we can eliminate to help those on the frontlines protect Americans from this outbreak.”