President Trump signaled that he wants the economy to be back in full swing as quickly as possible, telling the public during a Coronavirus Task Force briefing that his administration will reevaluate the 15-day guidelines the White House issued last week when that time is up.
America, Mr. Trump said, "will soon be open for business," even as public health officials warn Americans should be prepared to continue social distancing and closures for the time being.
"Our country was not built to be shut down," the president said Monday night. "... We're not gonna let the cure be worse than the problem."
As CBS News White House correspondent Paula Reid has reported, the president wants the economy to be kicked back into high gear as soon as possible, as business closures eliminate jobs and send the stock market spiraling.
The president announced the administration is working on distributing millions of masks to the hardest-hit areas.
"FEMA is distributing 8 million N95 respirator masks and 13.3 million surgical masks across the country right now. Focusing on the areas with the greatest need, we have shipped 73 pallets of personal protective equipment to NYC and 36 pallets to the state of Washington," the president said.
And Dr. Deborah Birx, a point person on the task force, said self-swab testing will be available soon.