The US government has announced the traveling restriction of some European countries for a total of 30 days. The restriction is expected to effect tomorrow, March 13th according to The Verge.
According to the acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Chad Wolf who made it known that the Trump administration will suspend the entry into the US for “Most foreign nationals”especially those from Europe.
Trump initially alluded to the ban affecting trade, but walked back that statement in a later tweet writing “trade will in no way be affected.”
“There will be exceptions for Americans who have undergone appropriate screenings,” Trump said in the speech. It’s not clear how the restrictions will actually impact trade.
The initial restriction was placed on China where the outbreak happened later on last year but the restriction will not affect transportation from the UK.
Meanwhile, the effects if the restriction is yet to be known but a recent study that modeled the virus spread found that travel ban will likely have limited effectiveness at stopping the virus but governments are enjoined to focus more on preventing transmission of the virus through hygiene efforts like handwashing and even social distancing.
The US president did not declare a state of emergency during the Wednesday’s address but made it known that he would use his executive power to move forward with emergency financial relief in the future even though a timeline was not given about availability of the relief available but said that the administration would be providing financial help to workers afflicted by coronavirus and their caregivers.
The US President also said that annual tax payments will be deferred for those that were negatively affected by the disease and his administration will also be making loans for small businesses that suffered from disruptions caused by the virus.
“Smart action today will prevent the spread of the virus tomorrow,” Trump said during his address. “Each of us has a role to play in defeating this virus.”
There have been 1,200 officially confirmed cases throughout the US and as the number grows, officials have declared the state of emergency and request that large events which includes political rallies and sports games be cancelled for a few weeks.
The Trump led administration also signed a $8.3 billion emergency spending bill in order to address the Coronavirus pandemic with the money going for researches and developing vaccine for the virus and also providing medical equipment for healthcare workers.