U.S. President Donald Trump has signed on Friday a $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill in a bid to blunt economic destruction from the virus pandemic ripping through the United States.
The White House had earlier passed a stimulus package, believed to be the largest in U.S. history, by voice vote, which simply gauges if more lawmakers vote for “aye” or “nay” on whether to support it.
The chamber scrambled to block an attempt to delay its passage.
The plan, which includes one-time payments to individuals, strengthened jobless insurance, further health-care funding, and loans and grants to businesses to deter layoffs, got through the Senate unanimously on Wednesday night.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi described the bill “as mitigation” of the virus pandemic’s destruction, forecasting that the Congress would draft more plans to aid in “recovery.”
“I signed the single biggest economic relief package in American history,” Trump said in the Oval Office.
“This will deliver urgently needed relief to our nation’s families, workers and businesses, and that’s what this is all about.”
It is unclear how quickly the U.S. government will disburse some of the money such as increased jobless benefits and small business loans. Yet, the White House and congressional leaders have said some individuals would receive direct payments worth up to $1,200 within three weeks.
Trump signed the bill into law a day after data showed jobless claims tremendously jumped to a record 3.3 million last week, as businesses across the country shut to slow the spread of the virus. Hospitals, particularly in New York, have urged for more resources as they struggle to keep up with a rush of coronavirus patients.
To date, the U.S. reported more than 92,000 coronavirus cases, the most in the world, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. At least 1,380 deaths due to the virus were reported.
