The United Kingdom and Ireland will soon been added to the list of nations that are banned from travelling to the United States as the country tries to contain its coronavirus outbreak.
“The president has decided to suspend all travel from the UK and Ireland midnight, Monday night, Eastern Standard Time,” Vice President Mike Pence said at a White House press conference on Saturday, adding that US citizens in the nations are encouraged to “come home.”
The confirmation came minutes after US President Donald Trump said he was “looking at it very seriously,” explaining that “they’ve had a little activity, unfortunately” in reference to the Covid-19 coronavirus spread.
Trump originally exempted the two nations from his 30-day ban on travelers from the 26 Schengen area European countries that took effect at midnight on Friday.
More than 800 people in the UK and 100 in Ireland have tested positive for the coronavirus. In the UK there has been over 20 have deaths from the Covid-19 illness from COVID-19 and in Ireland there has been one.