Biden's 1st 100 days live updates: Senate passes COVID relief bill along party lines

A Democratic aide tells ABC News that the final Senate COVID-19 relief bill makes changes around who will get a $1,400 direct payment.

The payments will begin to phase out at the $75,000 income bracket, and single filers making over $80,000 will not receive payments. For joint filers, payments will begin to phase out at $150,000 income level and joint filers making over $160,000 will not receive payments.
That addresses concern of moderates like Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., who have called for more targeted direct payments.

-ABC News' Trish Turner

Biden released a statement Wednesday saying more than 200,000 Americans have signed up for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act in the first two weeks since his administration started a special three-month enrollment period for HealthCare.gov on Feb. 15.

Biden signed an executive order on Jan. 28, opening the federal marketplace for a three-month special enrollment period for coverage during the pandemic. The special enrollment period ends May 15.

-ABC News' Justin Gomez

Senate Democratic aides tell ABC News they expect debate on the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill to start late Wednesday, but they’re waiting on the text to be completed and nonpartisan offices to issue a new price tag, also called a "score," and analysis.

After that, there will be up to 20 hours of debate over the bill, and then a Senate "vote-a-rama" will begin, during which senators can propose amendments. Then the Senate will vote on the bill's passage.

-ABC News' Trish Turner

Jill Biden, the nation’s highest-ranking teacher, is wading into the debate over reopening schools, with a visit Wednesday to Connecticut and Pennsylvania alongside the newly confirmed Education Secretary Miguel Cardona. Upping her role in this contentious fight is a significant move for Jill Biden, and one that could put her in the political crosshairs, as the Biden administration tries to balance the interests of teachers' unions and pandemic-weary parents who are desperate to get their kids back in school. 

The first lady will need to walk a fine line. Wednesday's visits are being billed more as a listening session. Biden and the education secretary will be stopping by two schools that have managed to reopen with the hopes of “having a conversation… about what has been effective, what has worked, what are the lessons learned, what do they need more assistance with?" White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. 

But Biden, who herself is teaching virtually at Northern Virginia Community College this semester, will nonetheless get a reality check on the difficulties facing schools as the Biden administration struggles to achieve its goal to reopen the majority of schools in his first 100 days. 

-ABC News' Mary Bruce and Sarah Kolinovsky