“We were supposed to leave at the beginning of 2020, we have canceled and rescheduled several times, and we are in danger of doing it again….” On the other end of the line, Anthony sighs. The 29-year-old bakery salesman, who lives in Liege, Belgium, plans to travel to the United States in April on an “East Coast trip” with his partner. But the young couple could well have been prevented from doing so. Reason? None of them are vaccinated against Covid-19, which is still required to travel to Uncle Sam’s country.
Covid may be a thing of the past for the vast majority of the population – the World Health Organization plans to raise its highest alert level soon – a few rare countries still require foreign travelers to receive at least two doses if they want to cross the border. border. Among them, the Foreign Ministry mentions Angola, Pakistan … and also the United States.
Djokovic is no exception.
More specifically, this obligation does not apply to children, permanent residents, those for whom injection is contraindicated, or those who must travel for emergency or humanitarian reasons.
Paying for this and the first racket of the world in tennis Novak Djokovic. Unvaccinated, he will not compete in the Miami Masters 1000 starting this Wednesday. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a vocal opponent of health restrictions, defended his cause and wrote a letter to US President Joe Biden. Unsuccessfully.
“I’ve vaccinated people in my family and they find this rule very surprising too,” squeals Anthony, who says he hasn’t “wanted” or “felt the need” to go through the injection box for more than two years. “Honestly, this is inexplicable! If you are vaccinated and go to the United States, you can still bring the virus there, ”the young Belgian thunders.
“There is no reason for compulsory vaccination against Covid-19”
Epidemiologist Antoine Flahaud shares this misunderstanding on a purely “scientific” level. “Today, there is no reason for compulsory vaccination against Covid-19, because the vaccine does not prevent infection, and we have no idea how long it lasts. It reduces transmission after the last injection,” said the director of the Geneva Institute for Global Health. .
However, “culturally, North Americans easily resort to mandatory vaccinations outside of Covid-19,” he recalls. For example, every student must be vaccinated against new diseases in order to enter a university in the United States. In Indiana, they even introduced a vaccine against … Covid.
The obligation to vaccinate foreigners across the Atlantic is also considered “obsolete” by the US Travel Association, a travel industry lobby. When will it end? No doubt soon. The House of Representatives voted on the corresponding text on Wednesday, February 8, but the final word will remain with the White House. The April 10 date was “earliest” announced in January, then it was mentioned that May 11 would be when the US health emergency ends.
Martin, a 30-year-old Parisian, chose to take the initiative to postpone until July the California trip he had been dreaming of with two friends since they met at university, “as a precaution.” He is not vaccinated, but two of his friends are vaccinated. “I really hope that by then this rule is gone, otherwise they will hate me,” he laughs.
Source: Le Parisien
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