The White House stated on Monday that the U.S. would not remove any current travel restrictions "at this time," owing to worries about the highly transmissible COVID-19 Delta variant and the increasing number of U.S. COVID-19 infections.
Biden Administration Formed Working Groups
In a recently published article in The Hill, last month, the Biden administration established working groups with Canada, Mexico, the European Union, and the United Kingdom to determine when international travel restrictions should be lifted.
The Biden administration has not said when it intends to relax international or foreign travel restrictions, but the formation of the working groups was viewed as a move in that direction. While European countries have eased restrictions on vaccinated Americans, the United States has resisted easing restrictions on visitors from other countries.
The Department of Homeland Security said earlier this month that the land border closures with Canada and Mexico will be extended until at least August 21. Beginning Aug. 9, the Canadian government intends to open the border to fully immunized Americans, according to a published report in NBC News.
Furthermore, most noncitizens who have spent the previous 14 days in the United Kingdom, European Union countries, Ireland, China, India, South Africa, Iran, or Brazil are presently barred from entering the United States due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country and Delta variant.
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CDC Director Released a Statement About the New Infections
In a recently published article in Reuters, the head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Rochelle Walensky, stated on Thursday that the seven-day average of new cases in the U.S. was up 53 percent from the previous week.
Moreover, the Delta variant, originally discovered in India, currently accounts for more than 80% of new cases in the United States and has been identified in more than 90 countries. White House Press Secretary Psaki also mentioned the CDC's recent advice to Americans to avoid travel to the United Kingdom due to an increase in cases.
The Biden administration has declined to provide any indicators that would tell when the travel restrictions would be lifted, and it has not said whether it will lift restrictions on certain nations or concentrate on improving individual passenger screening.
Delta Variant More Transmissible, But Vaccines Work
In the United States, the more transmissible delta variant has become the prevalent strain. COVID-19 cases have been on the rise again as vaccination rates have plateaued, after falling significantly at the start of the year. The White House has been urging eligible Americans who have not been inoculated yet to get vaccinated as soon as possible, stressing the danger of the delta strain.
According to CDC statistics, over 70 percent of people in the United States have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. The vaccinations have been proven to be effective against the delta variant. Vaccine hesitancy and resistance, on the other hand, have surfaced as increasing challenges for the government in its attempts to achieve herd immunity throughout the country.
