US President To Extend Mask Mandate

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

(Worthy News) – U.S. President Joe Biden will extend until mid-March a requirement that travelers wear masks on airplanes, trains, and buses and at airports and transit stations, several sources confirmed.

The move to extend the mandate, which was set to expire on January 18, is part of a broader strategy to combat COVID-19 amid concerns about the new Omicron variant, officials said.

The order to be announced will also include a new requirement that international travelers be tested for COVID-19 one day before departing for the United States, Worthy News monitored.

It comes after the Biden administration also stepped up pressure on the military to get vaccinated despite concerns among troops about reported side effects.

Biden already imposed travel restrictions on people coming to the United States from eight African nations, including South Africa.

The president said earlier this week that the restrictions were intended to buy the administration time.

His science advisers, including Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease specialist, claim it would only be a matter of time before the Omicron variant arrived in the United States

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