The United States will lift the mandatory COVID vaccination for foreign travelers on May 11

2023-05-01 23:40:07

The United States will lift on May 11 mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 for foreign travelers that arrive in the country by plane in force since 2021, the White House announced this Monday. That same day, the health emergency decreed in 2020 by then-president Donald Trump (2017-2021) against the coronavirus pandemic will end, as established by a law approved by Congress and ratified by President Joe Biden.

“Today we are announcing that the Administration will end COVID-19 vaccination requirements for federal employees, government contractors and international air travelers on may 11the same day the health emergency ends,” the Executive detailed in a statement.

Since 2021, the United States has required proof of vaccination for foreign travelers “in order to stop the spread of new variants entering the country.” The White House has justified ending this requirement because COVID-19 deaths in the United States have decreased by 95% since January 2021 and hospitalizations have fallen 91%.

In addition, worldwide deaths from the coronavirus are “in their lowest levels since the start of the pandemic“. The Executive recalled that almost 270 million Americans have received at least one dose of the vaccine against COVID-19, which has allowed the country to enter a “different phase”.

“Our COVID-19 vaccination requirements bolstered immunization across the country and the vaccination campaign has saved millions of lives,” the White House has claimed. With more than a million deathsThe United States is the country in the world with the most deaths from the pandemic. 69% of the US population, 230 million people, have completed the COVID vaccination schedule.