The United States may not make the list as the European Union mulls which countries it will allow travel access to the bloc when it reopens its borders on July 1.
Travelers from the U.S., as well as visitors from Brazil and Russia, may not be immediately allowed in because those countries are still dealing with high numbers of coronavirus cases, according to draft lists seen by the New York Times.
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The benchmark is the EU’s average number of new cases per 100,000 people over the past two weeks, which is at 16 for the 27-member group of countries. That average is far lower than what is seen in the U.S. at 107 new cases per 100,000, Russia at 80 cases, and Brazil at 190 cases.
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Diplomats discussing the move have compiled two lists, one with 47 countries that have only a lower infection rate than the EU and another with 54 countries that have infection rates lower than 20 new cases per 100,000 people.
After a list is compiled and finalized, it will be presented as a guideline prior to July 1. The EU cannot force member states to adhere to the recommendations, but it can reintroduce borders within the bloc. The list will be revised every two weeks in response to changes during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S. leads the world in both infections and deaths, with 2.3 million confirmed cases and more than 120,000 deaths.
