The Biden administration will extend the federal masking requirement for public transportation by at least two more weeks while the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention monitors the increase in cases attributed to the omicron subvariant, BA.2.
The mask mandate was set to expire on April 18, but the CDC extended it further out of an abundance of caution, according to an unnamed source who spoke with the Associated Press.
BA.2, also called the “stealth” variant due to its myriad genetic mutations that make it harder to detect through testing, now accounts for nearly 86% of COVID-19 cases in the United States, federal data show. The weekly average number of new cases remains relatively low at about 30,400, but the number of at-home tests performed now that supplies have improved means that cases are likely undercounted. Still, hospitalizations remain low, and daily deaths are also at their lowest point since last July.
Dr. Ashish Jha, President Joe Biden’s new COVID-19 response czar, hinted at the extension earlier this week when he said on the Today show that renewal is “absolutely on the table.” He added that he does not think “this is a moment where we have to be excessively concerned.”
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION REQUESTS RESUMPTION OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEE VACCINE MANDATE
The mandate applies to transportation hubs, planes, trains, buses, and airports. The Transportation Security Administration, which enforces the rule, enacted it on Feb. 1, 2021, with an original expiration date of May 11, 2021. It was then extended to September, then January, then mid-March, and finally to April 18.
Mandatory masking on transit and airlines has not been popular. Airline groups have lobbied to end the mandate. Several GOP lawmakers ramped up pressure recently on the Biden administration to rescind what they argue is an “unnecessary” mandate. Meanwhile, a group of 21 states sued the administration last month over the mandate.
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The federal mask mandate has been a source of conflict on public transportation, especially planes, with customers opposed to the mandate clashing with employees and those who want uniform masking. The standing federal mandate is perhaps the most notable remnant of early pandemic response measures, and its lifespan has extended beyond statewide masking rules, even in Democratic-run states that were eager to follow federal mitigation measures. The CDC has also frequently fallen behind states on masking, with a wide swath of Republican-led states ditching masking guidelines long ago.
