Biden's first move as president-elect will be to announce a new coronavirus task force in coming days: report

• President-elect Joe Biden will announce a 12-person coronavirus task force on Monday, according to Axios.
• The task force will be led by former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, and Yale School of Medicine professor Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, according to Axios.
• By declaring the formation of this task force, Biden signals toward expactations that the coronavirus will continue to be an area of focus even months from now.

President-elect Joe Biden on Monday will announce a new coronavirus task force comprising 12 members, Axios reported.

Biden, President Donald Trump's Democratic opponent in the race, surpassed 270 electoral votes by flipping swing state Pennsylvania Friday morning, paving the way forward for a Biden-Harris administration.

Business Insider, along with Vox and Decision Desk HQ, called victory for Biden on Friday. Over the weekend, multiple news outlets also declared Biden the winner of the 2020 presidential election.

Biden himself has not yet delivered a formal statement of victory, but he and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris have changed their Twitter bios to reflect their victory. A legion of world leaders congratulated the two on winning.

The announcement of a new task force marks Biden's first major decision as president-elect. By declaring the formation of this task force, Biden indicates that he expects the coronavirus to continue to be an area of focus even months from now.

Polls have shown that voters consistently give low marks to Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has roiled markets and shut down small businesses nationwide. A poll released last month by Pew Research found that 57% of registered voters said they were either very or somewhat confident that Biden would handle the coronavirus outbreak well. Only 40% said the same about Trump.

Biden has repeatedly slammed Trump for his response to the outbreak. "It was a life-and-death betrayal of the American people," Biden said, upon learning that Trump deliberately downplayed the consequences of the pandemic.

The coronavirus has infected more than 9.7 million people nationwide, according to the latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Of that, more than 236,000 people have died from it.

The former vice president has promised a series of proposals to curtail the spread of the disease, including making tests more widely available, expanding mask requirements, and distributing more personal protective equipment to institutions and hospitals.

Biden's task force, according to Axios, will have three people at its helm: former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, and Yale School of Medicine professor Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith.

His campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.