The Latest: Congress OKs $1.9T relief bill for Americans
WASHINGTON — Congress has sent President Joe Biden the landmark $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill.
Democrats claimed a triumph on a bill that marshals the government’s spending might against twin pandemic and economic crises that have upended a nation.
Most noticeable to many Americans are provisions to provide up to $1,400 direct payments this year to most adults and extend $300 per week emergency unemployment benefits into early September.
Included is hundreds of billions for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, schools, state and local governments and ailing industries from airlines to concert halls.
There are expanded tax credits over the next year for children, child care and family leave — some of them credits that Democrats have signaled they’d like to make permanent — plus spending for renters, feeding programs and people’s utility bills.
There’s aid for farmers of color, pension systems and student borrowers, and subsidies for consumers buying health insurance and states expanding Medicaid coverage for lower earners.
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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:
— What's inside the newly passed $1.9T relief bill for Americans
— Dr. Fauci: US virus shots ramping up toward immunity
— WHO report on Wuhan virus mission expected soon
— AP source: US to buy additional 100M J&J doses
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— Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
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