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 A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) spokesperson
confirmed the extension, first reported by Reuters. "The purpose of
TSA’s mask directive is to minimize the spread of COVID-19 on public
transportation," the spokesperson said
Major U.S. airlines were informed of the planned extension on a call
with TSA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on
Tuesday, four people briefed on the matter said.
The current TSA transportation mask order runs through Sept 13.
The extension reflects the impact of the highly transmissible Delta
variant and is an acknowledgement that transit remains potentially
risky, especially for unvaccinated people.
The move comes as U.S. airlines are grappling with whether to
require employees to be vaccinated, while Canada said last week
https://www.reuters.com/world/
americas/canada-require-vaccines-all-federal-public-servants-2021-08-13
it plans to require all airline passengers to be vaccinated.
On Friday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN
there was no discussion "at this time" about requiring vaccines for
domestic airline passengers.
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA President Sara Nelson said the
TSA mask mandate extension "will help tremendously to keep
passengers and aviation workers safe."
The current CDC order, which has been in place since soon after
Biden took office in January, requires the use of face masks on
nearly all forms of public transportation.
It requires face masks to be worn by all travelers on airplanes,
ships, trains, subways, buses, taxis and ride-shares and at
transportation hubs such as airports, bus or ferry terminals, train
and subway stations, and seaports.
The requirements have been the source of some friction, especially
aboard U.S. airlines, where some travelers have refused to wear
masks. The Federal Aviation Administration, which has instituted a
"zero tolerance" enforcement effort on unruly passengers, said on
Tuesday that since Jan. 1 it has received reports from airlines of
2,867 passengers refusing to wear masks.
TSA last month told Congress that since the start of the COVID-19
pandemic there have been over 85 physical assaults on TSA officers.
In some U.S. states, transportation hubs are among the only places
where masks are still required. The CDC reversed course https://www.reuters.com/world/us/cdc-set-unveil-revised-mask-guidance-vaccinated-americans-sources-2021-07-27
on July 27 and said fully vaccinated Americans should go back to
wearing masks in all indoor public places in regions where the
coronavirus is spreading rapidly.
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 The CDC recommendation
currently applies to about 94% of U.S. counties.
The CDC on Tuesday cited the Delta variant's
transmissibility in a statement explaining the
mask mandate. "Wearing a well-fitting mask that
covers your nose and mouth is a way to prevent
germs from spreading between yourself and other
people," it said.
A group of Republican lawmakers in July
introduced legislation to prohibit mask mandates
for public transport, and other Republicans want
the CDC to exempt fully vaccinated Americans
from the requirements. The CDC
mask order has no expiration date. The agency in June made a minor
tweak to its rules, saying it would no longer require travelers to
wear masks in outdoor transit hubs and in outdoor spaces on ferries
and buses.
Last month, the CDC official who signed the mask order, Marty Cetron,
told Reuters the transit mask mandates have been effective - and
noted that children 11 and under cannot yet be vaccinated.
"Masks are really powerful and we should make sure they're part of
our arsenal," Cetron said. "The truth is that the unvaccinated
portion that's out there is extremely vulnerable."
United Airlines said earlier this month it will require its 67,000
U.S. employees to get vaccinated by Oct. 25.
The Biden administration, citing the highly transmissible Delta
variant and rising daily COVID-19 cases https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-latest/factbox-latest-on-the-worldwide-spread-of-the-coronavirus-idUSKBN2FI25S,
has refused to lift any international travel restrictions that bar
most non-U.S. citizens from the United States.
Airline officials think it will be weeks or even months before the
administration lifts any existing travel restrictions.
(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Sonya
Hepinstall and Matthew Lewis)
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