US President Joe Biden will reinstate the ban on travelers from the European Union (EU), the UK and Brazil, including South Africa, on Monday as part of his efforts against the coronavirus pandemic, local media reported this Sunday.
The CNN chain and the publication Politico, citing White House sources, said the decision reversed the measure announced Jan. 18, two days before the exit of power, by former President Donald Trump.. The restrictions were to be lifted from Tuesday, January 26.
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During this day, more than 25 million people were infected by the virus in the United States and 417,538 died, making the country still the country most affected by the pandemic in the world.
The ban on passengers from the European Union and the United Kingdom was imposed by Trump in March, while that for Brazil dates from May. In his Jan. 18 decision, Trump decided to leave the travel restriction for passengers from China and Iran in effect.
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Once the Republican leader’s order was known, current White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki pointed out on her Twitter account that “with the worsening pandemic and the emergence of more contagious variants around the world, this not the best time to lift restrictions on international travel. ”
“The government does not intend to lift these restrictions on January 26”, the current spokeswoman anticipated.
In addition, starting Tuesday, the United States will require a negative Covid-19 test for all airline passengers before flying into the country, including Americans. The measure, announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Jan. 12, also includes a recommendation to retest three to five days after arriving in the country and remain in quarantine for seven days after travel.
US chief epidemiologist Anthony Fauci pointed out on Sunday that following the data released by the UK government, the UK variant should be believed to “cause more harm, including death,” and pointed out that the vaccine is effective. remains, even against the South African variant.
Fauci indicated that the British variant of the virus “occurs in at least 20 states in the United States”, and he pointed out that the vaccines being administered in the country, those from Moderna and Pfizer, “appear to continue to protect against the mutated strain.”
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When asked about the presence in the United States of the lineage discovered in South Africa, he admitted that he cannot say “for sure” that they know it as fact.
The official indicated that while the South African mutation has been observed to “in some ways” nullify the effectiveness of the vaccines, they still fall within a “buffer level” that makes them effective against these variants.
EFE