President Joe Biden issued a proclamation Tuesday stating he has “determined that it is in the interests of the United States to revoke” the travel ban on eight countries in southern Africa. The proclamation officially takes effect on Dec. 31.
President Biden originally issued the ban after scientists in South Africa discovered the Omicron variant of COVID-19. In Tuesday’s proclamation, Biden said the ban is “no longer necessary to protect the public health.”
“Our Nation’s health officials, in collaboration with the South African scientists who originally reported the variant, have made substantial progress in understanding the Omicron variant,” Biden said in Tuesday’s proclamation. “Importantly, scientific experts have determined that people who are vaccinated against COVID-19 are protected against severe disease and hospitalization from the Omicron variant.”
Biden also claimed his administration has made international air travel safer since the travel ban took effect.
“The CDC has shortened the timeline for required pre-departure COVID-19 testing for fully vaccinated travelers from no more than 3 days prior to travel to no more than 1 day,” Biden said. “That requirement has strengthened the already stringent international travel protocols that my Administration has imposed, including requirements for noncitizens to be fully vaccinated, subject to limited exceptions, and for travelers to wear face masks on commercial conveyances and at United States transportation hubs.”
The decision to revoke the travel ban comes as early research out of South Africa is indicating the Omicron variant could displace the previously-dominant Delta variant of COVID-19. The study only looked at 33 people, and it has yet to be peer reviewed. However, it found people who were infected with Omicron, especially those who were vaccinated, developed enhanced immunity against the Delta variant.
“The increase in Delta variant neutralization in individuals infected with Omicron may result in decreased ability of Delta to re-infect those individuals,” the scientists who conducted the study said. They went on to say the implications of this displacement would depend on whether or not Omicron is less pathogenic compared to Delta.
“If so, then the incidence of COVID-19 severe disease would be reduced and the infection may shift to become less disruptive to individuals and society,” the scientists said. One of the study’s authors tweeted that “this will help push Delta out”.
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