Biden to lift travel restrictions on southern African countries

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Washington Post

President Joe Biden will lift travel restrictions on eight Southern African countries on Dec. 31, citing new “understanding” of the omicron variant’s risks and spread, the White House announced Friday. Biden made the decision on the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which pointed to evidence that coronavirus vaccines are effective at preventing severe disease from the mutation-laden variant, a senior administration official told the Washington Post.

“According to our health and medical experts at the CDC, the value of country-based international travel restrictions is greatest early in an outbreak, before the virus or variant has been widely disseminated,” the White House said in a statement. “This value declines as domestic transmission starts to contribute a larger proportion of case burden.”

Biden on Nov. 26 instituted the travel restrictions on eight Southern African nations that were thought to be the epicenter of the omicron outbreak, citing the new variant’s unknown nature. The restrictions, which took effect on Nov. 29, barred most non-U.S. citizens from traveling to the United States if they had recently been in Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa or Zimbabwe.

Public health experts subsequently pushed the Biden administration to lift the measures, citing omicron’s broad spread internationally as well as inside the United States, and evidence that its infections are milder in people who have been vaccinated and boosted. “It is here in the USA and spreading via domestic travel,” said Ezekiel Emanuel, a University of Pennsylvania bioethicist who advised Biden’s transition team on coronavirus, calling the measures unnecessary.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/12/24/us-travel-restrictions-lifting-southern-africa/

[Tomconroy]

1. Thank heaven.

[marie999]

2. And open the doors for another variant.

[BumRushDaShow]

3. Oddly enough (or maybe not "odd" )

the bulk of the air traffic is NOT coming from Southern Africa. It's coming from Europe to here and that is where variants go to thrive before getting here. And there was never a freeze on air travel from Europe to here so...

This was the only one - https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/from-other-countries.html

[Tomconroy]

4. We owe an apology.

Link to tweet

?s=20

[sinkingfeeling]

5. Good. Are we going to ban all countries that are first to

discover a new variant?

[BumRushDaShow]

6. In all honesty

I think it was also partly due to their low vaccination rate. However what few travelers from there coming here vs Europe, which although has a higher vaccination rate has way more back and forth to here, made that decision an oddity.

The U.S. in general, only recently lifted travel bans from pretty much everywhere (including Europe) just over a month ago (Nov. 8, 2021) - https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/08/covid-vaccine-us-ends-international-travel-ban-opens-door-to-vaccinated-tourists.html

So although it "feels like" we haven't had any restrictions, we have since early during the pandemic in 2020 until last month (about 15 months worth).

[msfiddlestix]

7. my instincts are not in sync with my follow du members in this thread

I read this headline as if it must be a mistake, or misinformation.

To be clear I believe all travel should be put on pause until the spike on this virus dies out to the point where it's manageable.

It's everything but manageable at this point.

[BumRushDaShow]

8. I would agree although at this point, it's too late.

I mentioned above that we have actually had travel restrictions in place since early in the pandemic until literally a month ago - Nov. 8, 2021 - and as soon as we lifted them, in comes Omicron.

It's just like what happened with the masking advice this past May - the "go ahead, take off your masks and hug your loved ones" and then in comes Delta.

If anything, this whole nightmare has truly been a test for and elucidation/acceptance of what one's idea of the risks are of engaging n certain activities. And with this virus and its latest variant (with the large number of "breakthroughs" ), it makes it all the more frustrating for many.

One can only hope that the incessant reminders about a "new normal" will finally sink in (apparently it hasn't), and people adopt new habits that will help to mitigate the spread.

[msfiddlestix]

10. strongly agree.

I am finding myself challenged in staying with the program in a manner of speaking. Played by all of the common sense rules, couldn't wait to be vaccinated, and then boostered. But I'm realizing I couldn't wait until I was able be vaxxed, is because I want normal again.

I want to meet up in jam sessions the way we use to. For some of us players, it's practically a knee to knee positioning if sitting in chairs, or practically shoulder to shoulder, singing together cheek to jowl practically. I exaggerate, but just a little. it's the way we roll.

And now we've resumed sessions, but it's all in private no public venue's and we're all masked which of course precludes singing. Also, it's difficult to play with the level of energy masked, I don't know why that is exactly. it just is.

How are we ever going to resume life resembling normality with international traveling continuing?.

No one has the answer.. I feel so sad for my granddaughters future, culmination of this issue along with policies.

It actually brings tears.

Well I'm off to be with them for the next couple of days, (just to the east bay) going to enjoy them while I still can. And forget about this crises as much as possible until after xmas is over.

Thank you for the perspective... and enjoy the holidays if possible!

Cheers!

[DallasNE]

9. I live next to a testing center in Omaha

And the last two days the line waiting for drive up testing is long. I did not see anything like this during Delta. And we are not yet at the peak. About a week ago I read a prediction that infections would reach 1 million a day and with this much testing this early in the wave I can easily see that number being reached. This is easily going to be the "big one", we just don't have much data on hospitalizations and it is far too early on deaths. This move seems to be throwing the hands in the air and saying herd immunity should be reached soon and hopefully the vaccines will keep things mild. This sends the wrong signal.

[msfiddlestix]

11. I agree it's the wrong signal. like going backwards to early 2020

well... it is what it is... and I have no answers.

enjoy what we can during this holiday season.

[BumRushDaShow]

12. Keep in mind that "Delta" didn't hit the scene in the U.S. until this past summer (June/July)

So in reality, we have only had about 5 months of it (out of almost 24 months with the pandemic overall), with most of that being during a time of year that allowed more "outdoor" activities. We also had non-essential travel bans to/from around the world until just last month.

So in general, we were "bubbled".

The previous infections were from the wild-type (a/k/a Wuhan) and Alpha - the latter which became predominate much of last year into this year when other variants were sharing the stage with Alpha, and then suddenly got blown away by Delta over this summer.

This is what makes the timing of Omicron pretty rough given that we are now into the northern hemisphere winter with more people indoors and a series of holidays that focus on "family" gatherings indoors, whereas the summer holidays for "family" gatherings on Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day could happen outside.

And then there is something I keep saying over and over, which is this - although obviously the "common cold" is so much more benign than what we are seeing with this virus, it is still related as some types of "common cold" are caused by coronaviruses. However we have no "herd immunity" to a "common cold" so some expectation that we would have such for this is a pipe dream at this point due to the mutations. Same goes for the flu - there is no "herd immunity" for "the flu" (because of all the types and variants that change from year to year in predominance).