Passengers, airliners glad to see end in sight for mask mandate
A national transportation mask mandate for airlines is set to conclude in the coming days, as companies and passengers hope for a return to normalcy.
Posted — UpdatedA national transportation mask mandate for airlines is set to conclude in the coming days, as companies and passengers hope for a return to normalcy.
After months of comments and requests urging officials to loosen requirements, the White House moved the end of the transportation mask mandate to April 18.
During a Senate committee hearing in December, American Airlines CEO Doug Parker and Southwest CEO Gary Kelly mentioned that high grade HEPA air filters on planes capture virtually all airborne contamination and air quality is helped by how frequently cabin air is exchange with fresh air from outside the cabin.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky is on record as saying that BA.2, a subvariant of omicron, does not appear to cause more severe COVID-19 symptoms, but it is more transmissible than the original strain.
According to NBC News, U.S. cases appear to have plateaued over the past two weeks, with a consistent average of around 30,000 cases per day. However, medical experts said fewer people are getting tested, which is leading to underreporting. Data shows the country went from testing two million people a day to 530,000.
"I would not be surprised if we see an uptick in cases," said White House Chief Medical Advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci. "I hope and I believe that there's reason this will not happen is that we will not get a very large increase proportionality in hospitalizations because of the background immunity."
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