Bill, which would immediately rescind mandatory vaccinations for foreign incoming travelers has already passed the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and will now be represented in the Senate.
The progressive bill will not only end the current stringent requirements for foreigners, but also prevent the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from introducing a similar COVID-19 vaccination mandate in the future.
Today the US — the only country in the world that requires foreign travelers to prove at least two shots of an approved vaccine.
Despite protests from the travel industry and global backlash against extending coronavirus lockdowns and restrictions, the Biden administration remains supportive of vaccinations despite the president himself declaring victory over the pandemic.
The current regulations were intended to help “safely resuming travel around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic,” they replaced the general ban on non-citizens from entering the US.
The US Travel Association welcomed the passage of the enabling bill in the House of Representatives, saying it was time to quickly end the “obsolete” policy.
“The need for this requirement is long gone, and we appreciate the bipartisan action of the US House of Representatives to end this obsolete policy,”— comments on the situation in the Association.
If the Republican bill does not pass the Senate, it is likely that the CDC will renew the current mandate on May 11, when it expires.
The Biden administration has also been criticized for maintaining a general ban on entry of foreign visitors longer than in other countries, and the mandatory wearing of masks on an airplane was only lifted when a Florida judge ruled that “mask mode” was illegal.
President Biden, however, lifted last June the requirement for foreigners to test negative for COVID-19. And here an illogicality arises: it turns out that a foreign traveler can board a plane to the United States with a certificate of full vaccination in his pocket, and at the same time he will be infected with COVID-19.