Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Republican Lawmakers Sue CDC Over US Air Mask Mandate
Newsweek: Republican Lawmakers Sue CDC To End Airplane Mask Mandate
Republican lawmakers have sued the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to force an end to the requirement that face masks be worn on airplanes amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On Monday, a group of 16 House members led by Representative Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and joined by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) filed a lawsuit to end what they described as an "illegal mask mandate for individuals traveling on commercial airlines." (Slisco, 3/14)
AP: UK To End All COVID-19 Travel Rules Ahead Of Easter Break
Britain’s government said Monday all remaining coronavirus measures for travelers, including passenger locator forms and the requirement that unvaccinated people be tested for COVID-19 before and after their arrivals, will end Friday to make going on holiday easier for the Easter school vacation. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the changes will mean people “can travel just like in the good old days.” The passenger locator forms require people to fill in travel details, their address in the U.K. and their vaccination status. (3/14)
In cruise line industry news —
The Washington Post: CDC Lowers Coronavirus Warnings For Cruise Travel, Popular Caribbean Islands
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday moved several popular beach destinations — as well as cruise ship travel — into categories at lower risk of spreading the coronavirus. The public health agency reassigned travel warnings for nine vacation destinations in the Caribbean and Atlantic from Level 4 — which means a “very high” level of covid-19 — to Level 3, which means the level of the virus is merely “high.” They include Cuba, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sint Maarten, the British Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic and the Turks and Caicos. (Sampson, 3/14)
