The recent uptick in COVID-19 cases is leading to a possible vaccine mandate for domestic travel.
The potential requirement is not sitting well with the business community, but the discussion to consider the idea continues.
“When you're dealing with domestic flights, you want to keep people safe on domestic flights,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser, said during a White House COVID-19 briefing, according to The Hill. “And as I said, right now, we feel that the masking requirement and the degree of filtration on a plane is sufficient to keep people safe. If there's a need to do more beyond this masking, mainly having a vaccine issue, we will seriously consider that as new information arises.”
The emergence of the omicron variant, while the delta strain remains prominent, is a further concern to the safety of people across the nation. The idea of a vaccine mandate for domestic travel is not off the table, according to the White House.
Delta Air Lines opposes both vaccine and testing requirements for domestic air travel. Delta feels that between its hospital-grade filtration system and the current masking requirement, air travel has been made sufficiently safe.
Currently, the Biden administration is facing criticism for new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that have lowered the isolation time for people who have tested positive for COVID-19 but are asymptomatic, according to The Hill.
