Call this the first boneheaded idea of the Biden presidency.
The White House is set to charge members of the press $170 to have a COVID-19 test before they can enter the grounds, in a move that could financially cripple news organizations and limit coverage of the Biden administration altogether.
The White House press office will bill journalists for their own coronavirus tests, which are mandatory for anyone entering the White House complex.
It’s a move that places a gigantic financial wall for journalists who cover the administration.
Under the Trump administration, COVID-19 testing for the media was only available to members of the press pool who were coming into close contact with Donald Trump or to people exposed to a positive case via a White House event.
These tests were paid for by the White House however testing was not available to journalists attending press conferences in the briefing room or entering the grounds for other White House events.
Several members of the media were exposed to the virus during Trump’s tenure, including at least three journalists who tested positive in the wake of the Rose Garden ‘superspreader’ event after which then-president Trump was admitted to hospital with the virus.
As soon as Joe Biden took office in January, his administration introduced mandatory COVID-19 rapid testing for all journalists each morning before they can enter the White House campus, as well as a requirement to wear surgical face masks and practice social distancing.
The White House has been footing the bill for the testing since it was made mandatory in January but it now plans to charge the media $170 per test starting March 1, according to the Washington Post.
It has also agreed to accept proof of a negative test taken outside the grounds following backlash over the initial plan to only permit on-site testing.
However it is not clear what outside tests will be permitted with some private tests also costing up to around $200 a go.
White House officials said paying for the tests has put a strain on the Oval Office budget meaning the cost going forward needs to be footed by news organizations.
However, with journalists not permitted to enter the White House grounds without a negative test, the new rule may simply mean some members of the press being excluded from briefings altogether.
The White House Correspondents’ Association, which represents members of the media covering the White House, warned it is financially impractical for the news industry to foot the bill and that many organizations will not have the budget to afford it.
‘It sets up a means test for White House coverage,’ one member told the Post.
Another journalist compared the charges to paying for other health and safety measures at the White House such as security barriers.
Small media organizations could be especially hard hit due to their already limited budgets, meaning they will no longer be able to attend and provide coverage of White House events.
But, large organizations will also feel the squeeze as some networks send around eight people at a time to film and report on the White House goings-ons, which would add up to a staggering $1,360 per day in fees.
The media has long been charged by the White House for the privilege of reporting on presidents and their official business, with journalists already billed for meals and to travel on Air Force One as part of the pool.
No other federal agency currently charges journalists for testing.
The new fees come at a time when many media organizations are already struggling financially with hundreds of journalists across the industry laid off in 2020 due to the pandemic.