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EPA
The U.S. is considering new rules that would temporarily allow U.S. citizens and legal residents to enter the U.S. to control a rise in coronavirus cases.
U.S. media say the proposal will affect people suspected of being exposed to or infected with the virus.
President Donald Trump has often addressed his travel commitments to foreigners as a key to curbing the spread of the virus.
But U.S. citizens and legal residents have so far been exempt from travel restrictions regarding entering the U.S.
It is unclear whether the proposed measures will go ahead.
What is in the draft proposal?
The draft memo, first reported by the New York Times, would attempt to use public health powers to expand the administration’s legal authority.
The proposed rule would affect all entry points, including airports and borders with Canada and Mexico, although it refers primarily to the outbreak of viruses in Mexico, according to the Times.
It states that any order applicable to U.S. citizens and permanent residents should protect the constitutional rights of individuals and would apply only in “the rarest of circumstances.”
Is it legal?
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has the power to track and investigate individuals traveling in and around the U.S. if they are suspected of carrying certain diseases, such as tuberculosis or SARS.
It is unclear whether this would legally allow the government to deny access to citizens or residents, or how long they might be banned from returning.
The CDC and US Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the BBC.
Director of the American Civil Liberties Union Immigrant Rights Project, Omar Jadwat, said preventing American citizens from leaving their country would be unconstitutional.
“The Trump administration has issued one border ban after another – mostly on children and asylum seekers – with Covid-19 as an excuse. It has abysmically failed to get the virus under control in the United States. The rumored order would be a another grave would be a mistake in a year that has seen far too much. “
How bad is the virus situation in the US?
The U.S. has more than five million confirmed Covid-19 cases and 163,500 deaths – the highest in the world, according to Johns Hopkins University. Cases have increased in recent months across states in the southern and western regions, when lockdown measures were lifted.
Currently, there are cases of decline in Mexico.
Since March, the White House has used public health laws to limit the number of immigrants entering the U.S. and deporting migrants, including children, to the border.
Mr. Trump has sought to blame the growing cases in the U.S. over Mexico while reiterating his pressure on the nation.
Discussing the spikes in the southern U.S. at a briefing last month, he told reporters: “We also share a 2,000-kilometer border with Mexico, as we know very well, and cases are growing unfortunately in Mexico.”
Many Americans living along the U.S.-Mexico border crossing back and forth for recreational and commercial reasons. In July, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico said 90% of those crossing the southern border were U.S. citizens as permanent residents.
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Without March, non-essential cross-border travel is restricted, but it does not apply to those traveling for work, humanitarian aid efforts, medical reasons or family cases.
Medical experts have said that travel associations do not work in cases where there is already a significant spread of the community, such as the situation in the US.
