Fauci Supports COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for All Domestic Air Travel

Video source: YouTube, theSkimm

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said he would support a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for all air travel in the US. 

“I would support that if you want to get on a plane and travel with other people that you should be vaccinated,” the White House chief medical adviser said in an interview with theSkimm podcast, The Hill reported. 

In the interview, which was taped Friday and set to be released Thursday, Fauci also reiterated his support for student vaccine mandates, saying that such policies already exist for other illnesses.

“When you hear us say should you mandate vaccination for children to be able to attend school, some people say, ‘Oh, my goodness. That would be terrible to do that.’ But we already do that and have been doing that for decades and decades,” Fauci said.

“I don’t know what school you went to, but the school that I went to, you had to be vaccinated for measles, mumps, rubella, polio or otherwise you couldn’t go to school,” he said. 

His remarks come as the highly contagious Delta variant continues to spread across the country, causing a dramatic surge in cases. 

The US is averaging about 145,000 new infections daily, which has stressed the healthcare system in areas where vaccination rates remain stubbornly low. 

As of Monday, only 178 million Americans (53.8% of the population) have been fully vaccinated, while 209 million (63.1%) have received at least one dose of a vaccine, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

As part of a continued push to get more Americans vaccinated, the Biden administration unveiled a six-pronged strategy last week that includes sweeping vaccination requirements for federal workers and companies with more than 100 employees, increased school safety protocols and more accessible coronavirus testing.

Biden also directed the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to double fines for travelers who refuse to mask up in airports and on planes, buses and trains.

On Friday, White House COVID-19 response team coordinator Jeff Zients said the administration is “not taking any measures off the table” when asked if it had “ruled out” implementing vaccine or testing requirements for domestic flights.

_____

Source: Equities News