Biden announces measures to combat variant spread as new cases detected in several states

US President Joe Biden announced Thursday a winter campaign against Covid-19, with new testing requirements for travelers and a surge in vaccination efforts as the new Omicron variant threatens to revive the pandemic.

The variant was first detected in South Africa last week, and has since spread to dozens of countries worldwide. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that the new strain poses a “very high” global risk, and has urged governments to accelerate vaccination of high-priority groups. Read FRANCE 24’s live coverage:

04:40 Paris time: How one French lab is identifying cases of the new variant

On Thursday, France confirmed the first two cases of the variant on its mainland, adding to a previous case identified on the overseas territory of Réunion. With our colleagues at France 2, Jean-Emile Jammine looks at how one French lab is sequencing Covid-19 samples to identify cases of the new variant.

04:15 Paris time: Nepal to ban travellers from eight African countries, Hong Kong

Nepal will ban the entry of travellers who have been in eight African countries or Hong Kong, to curb the spread of the new Omicron coronavirus variant, a government spokesman said on Friday.

The ban, which goes into effect at midnight on Friday, covers people who have been in or transiting through South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Malawi and Hong Kong.

Travellers who have been to these countries in the past three weeks will also not be allowed to enter Nepal, and all other international visitors already in transit must spend seven days at their own cost in hotel quarantine, the government said in a statement.

“Nepali nationals are advised against non-essential foreign travel for fear of the new variant,” Home Ministry spokesman Phanindra Pokharel told Reuters.

Government employees and delegates to international conferences must obtain prior permission for their visits.

03:55 Paris time: Biden announces measures to combat Omicron variant as new cases detected in New York, Hawaii

Urging the nation—in particular his political rivals—to unite behind the strategy, Biden unveiled a raft of actions designed to tamp down Covid-19 in the coming months, as the latest Omicron variant spreads worldwide.

Ten cases of the new strain have so far been confirmed in the United States, including five in New York announced Thursday evening by state Governor Kathy Hochul, one in the Pacific island state of Hawaii and a second case in California.

The Hawaii case and one in Minnesota both involved residents with no recent international travel history, signaling the strain is already circulating inside the country.

“This is a case of community spread. The individual has no history of travel,” the Hawaii Health Department said in a statement about the island’s confirmed Omicron case.

Biden’s updated actions include the requirement that all inbound international travelers be tested within one day of flying. This will apply to all travelers, both American and foreign, regardless of vaccination status, a US official said.

For domestic travelers, Biden will announce he is extending a mask mandate on airplanes, trains and other public transport through mid-March.

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters testing and vaccine requirements could eventually be added to domestic flights too. “Nothing is off the table,” she said.

In addition to his public rollout, Biden penned a column for the Friday edition of the large-circulation USA Today national newspaper to assuage Americans’ “unease” about the new variant and Covid in general.

“We will beat it back with science and speed, not chaos and confusion—just as we did in the spring and again with the more powerful delta variant in the summer and fall,” the president wrote.

Biden and his aides have recently stressed there will be no return to mass shutdowns. But the White House also faces the challenge that many Americans are not receptive to Biden’s appeals for collective action.

Despite ever-more creative attempts to encourage people to get their shots, about 40 percent of the country have yet to be fully vaccinated, and booster rates are lagging too.

Biden said a surge in outreach on vaccines and booster shots was being launched, with a nationwide campaign targeting recipients of Medicare public health care. The government will team up with AARP, a large lobbying group representing people aged 50 and over.

At the other end of the age scale, the Biden administration will try to ensure that schools do not return to mass lockdowns.

“We’re expanding our efforts to vaccinate children, ages five and up,” said Biden. “For any parent worried about the Omicron variant or the Delta variant, get your child vaccinated at one of the 35,000 locations in the country.”

In another bolstering of existing policies, the White House will encourage the use of home testing kits by announcing that health insurance must cover 100 percent of the cost.

For those without health insurance, there will be an increase in the availability of free kits.

The kits currently sell for around $25, as opposed to being available either for free or at nominal costs among peer nations in Europe.