Coronavirus: US bars entry to foreigners travelling from mainland China, declares public health emergency
- Foreign nationals arriving in the US from mainland China will be denied entry starting Sunday
- US citizens who have been in Hubei province will be quarantined for two weeks
The United States will deny entry to foreigners travelling from mainland China to prevent the new coronavirus from spreading after declaring a public health emergency on Friday.
President Donald Trump’s order will require US citizens, permanent residents and immediate family members arriving in the country from China’s Hubei province – the epicentre of the contagion – to be quarantined for 14 days starting Sunday at 5pm Eastern time.
The measures were announced by the White House task force on the coronavirus led by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. The order came as US health authorities confirmed the seventh case of the contagion – officially known as the 2019 novel coronavirus – in Santa Clara, California.
The move by Washington follows similar restrictions put in place by Japan and Singapore on incoming visitors from mainland China.
The two Asian countries moved to close their borders to residents of the mainland after the World Health Organisation’s declaration of a global health emergency on Thursday.