RUSCOVA, ROMANIA - FEBRUARY 24: Face masks being produced in a factory, near a village where the majority of the population is of Ukranian ethnicity, on February 24, 2022 in Ruscova, Romania. Ukrainians are the third-largest ethnic minority in Romania, with more than half living in the Marmures County. On February 24, 2022, Russia began a large-scale attack on Ukraine, with explosions reported in multiple cities and far outside the restive eastern regions held by Russian-backed rebels. (Photo by Andreea Campeanu/Getty Images)
Roommates, if you have an upcoming trip planned and youre hopping on a form of public transportation, make sure you pack your mask because youll still need it. While there has been discussion of the federal transportation mask mandate ending, CNN reports that it has been extended for another 15 days. This means individuals traveling aboard airplanes, trains, and public transportation in the United States will wear a mask until early May.
The federal government made the confirmation on Wednesday, and its set to expire on May 3rd officially. A statement from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states,
“CDC continues to monitor the spread of the Omicron Covid-19 variant, especially the BA.2 subvariant. That now makes up more than 85% of US cases.” It added, “Since early April 2022, there have been increases in the 7-day moving average of Covid-19 cases in the United States. TSA will continue to coordinate closely with CDC and communicate any changes to this requirement with the public.”
In addition, the CDC says BA.2 caused 86% of new Covid-19 cases nationwide last week.
A Biden administration official told CNN the goal of the extension was to gather more information about the BA.2 variant. Data from Johns Hopkins University shows the USA is currently averaging 38,345 new COVID-19 cases per day, and cases are trending up in more than half of the states, except one.
Northeast, Delaware has had one of the lowest amounts of cases since mid-July. As we previously reported, the mandate was originally set to expire on April 18th. White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha stated Monday that the CDC planned to share a scientific framework for the federal transportation mask mandate this week.
Roommates, do you plan on wearing your mask while traveling?
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