U.S. House votes to end foreign air traveler COVID vaccine requirement

Washington, Feb. 9 (BNA): The US House of Representatives has voted to end the requirement that most foreign air travelers be vaccinated against COVID-19, one of the few remaining pandemic travel restrictions still in place.

The vote was 227 to 201 with seven Democrats joining the Republicans. Reuters reported that no Republicans voted against the bill.

The Biden administration in June dropped its requirement that people arriving in the United States by air must test negative for COVID, but did not raise the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) vaccination requirements for most foreign travelers.

The White House said Tuesday it opposes the bill, saying the vaccine requirement “allowed loved ones around the world to be reunited while reducing the spread of COVID-19 and the burdens it places on the United States’ health care system.”

It is not clear if the Senate will take the bill.

The White House plans to end the COVID public health emergency on May 11. “As we approach the end of the public health emergency, the administration will review all relevant policies, including this one,” the White House said.

The CDC says vaccines remain the most important public health tool for fighting COVID-19 and recommends vaccinating all travelers.

The American Travel Association said “This requirement has long since passed, and we appreciate the bipartisan action by the U.S. House of Representatives to end this outdated policy…the United States is the only country that has maintained this policy.”

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Currently, adult visitors to the United States who are not citizens or permanent residents must show proof of vaccination before boarding their flight, with some limited exceptions.

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Republican Representative Thomas Massie introduced the measure to overturn the vaccine requirement.






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