New federal ventilation guidelines mark next step in fight against COVID

The Biden administration will announce new ventilation standards for schools and businesses on Thursday.

The Biden administration will announce new building ventilation standards for schools and businesses on Thursday -- a welcome step for experts who feel the U.S. has long been behind the curve on using air filtration as a valuable tool to fight COVID-19.

The new guidance, the latest addition to President Joe Biden's recent COVID-19 plan, is the first time such a standard has been created at the national level, synthesizing expert guidance on how clean air can prevent the spread of illness.

The new recommendations, which will be rolled out by the Environmental Protection Agency, urge all building owners and operators to hit four main steps in the form of a detailed "checklist" to ultimately get more fresh air in.

"It's a two-page document. It's written in plain language, very straightforward," Mary Wall, a senior policy adviser at the White House, told ABC News. "We think this is an action list that really all buildings can draw from."