White House says it's cutting back funding for COVID tests. Why experts say Americans may pay the price this fall

The White House is gearing up to make some “painful decisions” as COVID-19 funding is running out without relief from Congress.

The Biden administration said this week it will divert $10 billion in coronavirus relief from testing and other programs to maintain stockpiles of vaccines and treatments for Americans heading into the fall and winter.

“These are very, very difficult choices,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, told reporters Thursday. “This is not where we should be in the pandemic.”

Health experts agree vaccines should be a priority, but testing remains a pillar of the nation's COVID-19 public health strategy. Without it, they say the U.S. will have a hard time managing surging cases expected in the fall and winter.

Dr. Michael Mina, a testing expert and chief medical officer of eMed, called the scenario a pandemic "Groundhog Day."

“We’re probably going to hit the fall and we’re going to see something very similar to what we saw last year,” he said. “Testing is one of the best tools that we have – especially self-testing – to enable friends and family to gather safely and keep society running during big waves.”

Officials say the reallocation may include cutting back on free at-home rapid tests, scaling back funding for research and development of new COVID-19 vaccines and limiting orders of personal protective equipment.

Reducing testing capability could make tests more expensive and harder to access, experts say. Without tests, people won’t know if they're infected with the coronavirus and will be more likely to spread it, leading to more cases.

“I can see where prioritizing vaccination is in line with the administration’s stance,” said Dr. Neil Sehgal, assistant professor of health policy and management at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. “But cases still really matter, and testing matters to detect cases early and try to limit spread.”

Americans vulnerable to severe disease need timely access to testing to be prescribed life-saving treatments, experts noted. Pfizer’s antiviral, Paxlovid, has been shown to be effective at keeping high-risk COVID-19 patients out of the hospital but it must be given within five days of symptoms.

Not having the ability to test means vulnerable people may miss their window for treatment, leading to more hospitalizations and deaths, said Dr. Tom Inglesby, director of the Center for Health Security of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

As tests become more expensive and harder to find, health experts worry vulnerable communities and essential workers will be the first to suffer despite the administration's effort to increase equitable access.

“Only the most privileged among us would have access to preventative tools,” Sehgal said. “If you’re a front line or essential worker who has been in the thick of this since the pandemic started, it’s becoming more difficult to protect yourself.”

The Biden administration has been warning for months of the potential for rationing and other tough trade-offs if Congress doesn't act to provide additional funding. Lawmakers in March appeared near a deal for $10 billion of the $22.5 billion that President Joe Biden has requested, but negotiations broke down.

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Officials said they had to act swiftly to secure vaccines before other nations locked in their place in line ahead of the U.S. But even after diverting funds, there still won’t be enough money to provide them to everyone, Jha said.

“Let me be clear: We do not have enough resources to make sure that every American who wants one of the next generation of vaccines will be able to get one,” he said. “But we needed to be at the negotiating table … and that’s why we pulled the funds.”

Experts agree that securing next-generation vaccines is important, especially after Moderna revealed data showing its new combination vaccine booster protects against the omicron variant better than its original booster dose.

But they expressed dismay that the U.S. has to choose between vital public health strategies to protect Americans.

“It’s really unfortunate and kind of shocking that we’re in this position,” Inglesby said. “It’s hard to fathom how we can be in this position two years into this.”

Contributing: Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY; Associated Press. Follow Adrianna Rodriguez on Twitter: @AdriannaUSAT.

Health and patient safety coverage at USA TODAY is made possible in part by a grant from the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare. The Masimo Foundation does not provide editorial input.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: COVID tests: Why experts say it may be harder to find them in the fall