The United States announced on Sunday that it is suspending the entry of non-US citizens traveling from Brazil due to the coronavirus pandemic. China and members of the European Union had previously been banned from traveling to the United States.
White House spokesperson Kayleigh McEnany said, “Today, the President has taken decisive action to protect our country by suspending the entry of aliens who have been in Brazil during the 14-day period before seeking admittance to the United States”.
Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, now has the second-highest number of confirmed cases in the world with more than 350,000 infections and more than 22,500 deaths.
Health experts say the real number of cases could be even higher because of insufficient testing in the country of around 210 million people.
The World Health Organization announced that South America has become a new epicenter of the pandemic with Brazil the hardest-hit.
