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President Biden has imposed another coronavirus-related travel ban just hours after one of his top advisers cautioned that the U.S. didn’t have enough information to do so.
On Friday morning, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Biden’s chief medical adviser, told CNN that the new of COVID-19 spreading through Africa, now named by the World Health Organization (WHO) as Omnicron, was raising a “red flag that this might be an issue we don’t know.” He also emphasized the need to conduct testing.
FAUCI ON NEW COVID-19 VARIANT: US, SOUTH AFRICAN SCIENTISTS STUDYING POTENTIAL TO EVADE VACCINE ANTIBODIES
When asked about a travel ban, he added: “Obviously as soon as we find out more information we’ll make a decision as quickly as we possibly can. You always put these things on the table, but you don’t want to say you’re going to do it until you have some scientific reason to do it. That’s the reason why we’re rushing now to get that scientific data to try and make an informed decision about something like that.”
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 04: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee about the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
OMNICRON VARIANT SPREAD: US TO LIMIT TRAVEL FROM 8 SOUTHERN AFRICAN COUNTRIES
He went on to say that “you want to find out if in fact [the variant] does evade the vaccines.”
It’s unclear what additional information, if any, prompted the administration’s decision to ban travel from eight countries on Friday. In a statement, Biden indicated that he made the decision after meeting with Fauci.
President Joe Biden attends a virtual COVID-19 summit during the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
(AP…
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