Beginning next month, the United States will allow fully vaccinated foreigners to visit its land borders for non-essential purposes such as tourism or for friends and family.
The change would allow foreign tourists to enter the US via land or ferry ports for the first time since March 2020. Government officials have not yet announced a date for the policy change, but said it will “start early November” in parallel with the country’s updated international air transport system.
“This is an important step that will further improve the safety of international travel and the safety of Americans at home,” senior administration officials said in a phone call to reporters. “These new vaccination regulations are the best tool we have in our arsenal to keep people safe and prevent the spread of COVID-19.”
Vehicle, rail, and ferry travel between the United States and Canada and Mexico has been largely limited to essential travel such as trade since the earliest days of the pandemic. The new rules, due to be announced on Wednesday, will allow fully vaccinated foreigners to travel to the US from early November, regardless of the reason for travel, if a similar easing of restrictions on air travel in the country is due to take effect.
Even important travelers planning to enter the United States, such as truck drivers, must be fully vaccinated by mid-January.
Also on the news:
►Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals reversed course and announced that vaccination certificates are no longer required to participate in the Indio festivals.
►Atlanta Braves outfielder Jorge Soler was added to the COVID-19 injury list on Tuesday, just two hours before Game 4 of their National League Division Series game against the Milwaukee Brewers.
►A Rhode Island man was sentenced to 70 months in prison for COVID stimulus fraud. He received nearly $ 600,000 in stimulus money from three different banks and spent the money on trips to Las Vegas and New Hampshire, a Camaro, home renovations, and online gaming.
📈 Current Numbers: The US has recorded more than 44 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 716,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. Global Total: More than 238 million cases and 4.8 million deaths. More than 187 million Americans – 56% of the population – are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
📘 What We Are Reading: Executives and staff at a state veterans nursing home in Illinois poorly managed a coronavirus outbreak that killed 11 residents in the fall of 2020, long after staff were informed of the pandemic threat to the elderly , revealed a state investigation. Read more here.
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Florida County faces a $ 3.57 million federal fine for compulsory vaccination
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has followed through on his threat of fines against local governments that require employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, giving Leon County a fine of US $ 3.57 million through Nov. 5 Dollars on.
In mid-September, DeSantis said he would not be fired from Floridians because of a vaccine mandate and announced that he would be fined $ 5,000 per employee.
After Vince Long, the district administrator of Leon, made vaccines a requirement for employment, all 714 employees were required to be vaccinated by October 1 or have a few exceptions. A total of 14 employees were laid off because they refused to do so.
In a statement from the Florida Department of Health dated October 6, Division Director Douglas Woodlief briefed Long of the fine that is being imposed in violation of state law.
Democratic MPs representing Tallahassee admonished the decision to impose a fine for exceeding governorship.
“The governor has gone too far,” said MP Ramon Alexander D-Tallahassee. “Local governments cannot just sit on their hands and should be able to issue emergency standards. Vaccines are an important tool that helps us control this pandemic. “
– Karl Etters, Tallahassee Democrat
Brooklyn Nets ban Kyrie Irving from team activities
NBA star Kyrie Irving won’t play or train with his team “until he’s qualified to be a full participant,” said Sean Marks, general manager of the Brooklyn Nets, in a statement Tuesday.
The NBA has tried to vaccinate players through training and health and safety protocols that make the season easier for vaccinated players and harder for unvaccinated players.
New York City has a vaccination mandate that states that Irving, who is not vaccinated, and other Nets and New York Knicks players must be vaccinated in order to play at the Barclays Center or Madison Square Garden.
Faced with a scenario where Irving would play street games but not home games – a suboptimal situation for any team, especially one with the talent (Kevin Durant, James Harden) to win an NBA championship – the Nets decided eventually guard for it without playing the point unless it is vaccinated.
– Jeff Zillgitt
Southwest, American Airlines among Texan companies opposing governor to comply with federal vaccine mandate
Two of the country’s largest airlines – Southwest Airlines and American Airlines – said Tuesday they plan to follow emerging federal guidelines requiring their employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, despite an order from Texas Governor Greg Abbott, which tries to block such mandates.
Dallas-based Southwest Airlines ordered last week that all of their estimated 55,000 employees should be vaccinated against COVID 19 by December 8th. This followed an instruction from President Joe Biden, who said in September that all private companies with more than 100 employees must require their employees to be vaccinated or have weekly tests for the coronavirus.
Southwest said in a statement Tuesday that the president’s executive order “supersedes any state mandate or statute,” adding that the company has a duty to abide by it, despite Abbott’s measures “to remain compliant as a federal contractor.”
– American statesmanship personnel
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