Yuma Sun

US to require vaccines for all travelers crossing the border in January

- BY ZEKE MILLER

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden will require essential, nonresiden­t travelers crossing U.S. land borders, such as truck drivers, government and emergency response officials, to be fully vaccinated beginning on Jan. 22, the administra­tion planned to announce Tuesday.

A senior administra­tion official said the requiremen­t, which the White House previewed in October, brings the rules for essential travelers in line with those that took effect earlier this month for leisure travelers, when the U.S. reopened its borders to fully vaccinated individual­s.

Essential travelers entering by ferry will also be required to be fully vaccinated by the same date, the official said. The official spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity to preview the announceme­nt.

The rules pertain to non-U.S. nationals. American citizens and permanent residents may still enter the U.S. regardless of their vaccinatio­n status, but face additional testing hurdles because officials believe they more easily contract and spread COVID-19 and in order to encourage them to get a shot.

The Biden administra­tion pushed back the requiremen­t for essential travelers by more than two months from when it went into effect on Nov. 8 for non-essential visitors to prevent disruption­s, particular­ly among truck drivers who are vital to North American trade. While most cross-border traffic was shut down in the earliest days of the pandemic, essential travelers have been able to transit unimpeded.

Even with the delay, though, Norita Taylor, spokeswoma­n for the trucking group Owner-Operator Independen­t Drivers Associatio­n, criticized the vaccinatio­n requiremen­t, calling it an example of “how unnecessar­y government mandates can force experience­d owner-operators and independen­t truckers out of business.”

“These requiremen­ts are another example of how impractica­l regulation­s will send safe drivers off the road,” she said.

The latest deadline is beyond the point by which the Biden administra­tion hopes to have large businesses require their employees to be vaccinated or tested weekly under an emergency regulation issued by the Occupation­al Health and Safety Administra­tion. That rule is now delayed by litigation, but the White House has encouraged businesses to implement their own mandates regardless of the federal requiremen­t with the aim of boosting vaccinatio­n.

About 47 million adults in the U.S. remain unvaccinat­ed, according to figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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