WASHINGTON — President Biden accelerated his administration’s coronavirus response on Tuesday as the country faced a surge in cases from a highly contagious new variant, telling anxious Americans that “we should all be concerned about Omicron, but not panicked.”
In a White House address delivered against the backdrop of a new global struggle to cope with the two-year-old pandemic, Mr. Biden said the government will buy a half-billion rapid coronavirus tests and distribute them free to Americans; create new vaccination and testing sites; and send 1,000 military medical professionals to help hospitals nationwide.
“I know you’re tired, really, and I know you’re frustrated,” Mr. Biden said, adding that vaccinated Americans should feel comfortable celebrating with their friends and family for the upcoming holidays. “We all want this to be over, but we’re still in it.”
The president said military troops will begin arriving in Wisconsin and Indiana this week to aid health care workers at hospitals. He said the first of the new testing sites will open in New York within days. And he promised to use the Defense Production Act to help manufacturers better meet the demand for testing.
Mr. Biden acknowledged the political division in the country and the fierce opposition to vaccine requirements among some people, saying his administration has put some mandates in place “not to control your life, but to save your life and the lives of others.” And he pleaded with Americans who remained...
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