[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 170 (Wednesday, September 29, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S6782]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN:
  S. 2888. A bill to reduce passenger, crewmember, and airport 
personnel risk of exposure to COVID-19, decrease the risk of 
transmission of COVID-19 on board aircraft and to United States 
destination communities through air travel, and protect children and 
other vulnerable individuals by preventing further spread of COVID-19 
in the United States; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the U.S. Air 
Travel Public Safety Act. This bill would require airline passengers 
flying domestically to provide proof that they are fully vaccinated and 
also encourage more healthcare workers to be vaccinated against COVID-
19.
  The rise of the Delta variant and the latest COVID-19 surge in the 
United States continue to hit hospitals hard, and nearly all patients 
who are hospitalized or dying from COVID-19 are unvaccinated.
  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
surveillance data has shown that even after the more transmissible 
Delta variant became dominant during the summer, people who were fully 
vaccinated were still about five times less likely to be infected and 
more than 10 times less likely to be admitted to the hospital or die 
compared to those unvaccinated.
  Further CDC studies have supported that our vaccines remain effective 
against the severe consequences of COVID-19. For this and other 
reasons, we must take every opportunity to get all eligible Americans 
vaccinated as quickly as possible.
  We know that travel is a significant factor in the spread of COVID-
19. According to a study published in the ``Proceedings of the National 
Academy of Sciences,'' people traveling to other counties or States 
last year contributed to higher COVID-19 case numbers in their 
destination communities. This was especially true during the 2020 
summer and winter holidays.
  As friends and family gathered together for Thanksgiving, in 
particular, we experienced the start of major back-to-back surges that 
would culminate into the highest daily cases, hospitalizations, and 
deaths reported nationally during the pandemic.
  While scientists aren't expecting COVID-19 peaks to reach these 
levels again, hospitals may still find themselves overwhelmed if large 
numbers of COVID-19 and influenza hospitalizations coincide this 
winter.
  The U.S. Air Travel Public Safety Act would add an additional 
preventative layer to COVID-19 safety measures for domestic air travel. 
Specifically, it would require airline passengers to provide proof of 
vaccination before boarding a domestic flight within the United States.
  The bill would also offer alternatives to airline passengers not yet 
fully vaccinated by allowing them to provide either proof of a negative 
COVID-19 test result or documentation proving that they have recovered 
from COVID-19.
  Current CDC guidance notes that fully vaccinated travelers are much 
less likely to get and spread COVID-19 than people who are 
unvaccinated. Furthermore, new research published in a Mayo Clinic 
Proceedings study shows that COVID-19 testing requirements for airline 
passengers could have a meaningful effect on detecting active 
infections either immediately before or after a flight.
  This legislation builds on current requirements in place since 
January 2021 that require proof of a negative COVID-19 test result for 
all airline passengers, including U.S. citizens, arriving from a 
foreign country to the United States. Many Americans have already 
experienced this process, and airlines are required to collect this 
passenger COVID-19 information on behalf of CDC.
  When added to current safety interventions required for domestic 
flights, these measures could decrease the risk of transmission during 
air travel, as well as the potential of air travelers spreading COVID-
19 at their destinations.
  The bill would also require CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization 
Practices--ACIP--to develop recommendations for COVID-19 vaccine use in 
healthcare settings and among health care personnel in other settings. 
ACIP currently recommends that healthcare personnel be vaccinated for 
vaccine-preventable diseases, such as Hepatitis B, measles, and 
influenza.
  ACIP's recommendation for the COVID-19 vaccine would further 
encourage health workers to get the shot and reduce the chances of 
spread. This is particularly important as vaccination rates among 
health workers remain lower than optimal.
  This legislation may also positively affect vaccine acceptance among 
the general public. According to a poll by the Kaiser Family 
Foundation, about 3 in 10 people surveyed who were waiting to be 
vaccinated said they would be more likely to get vaccinated if airlines 
required passengers to be vaccinated. This number increased to about 4 
in 10 among unvaccinated individuals who said they would only get the 
vaccine if required.
  We must ensure the millions of airline passengers that crisscross our 
country aren't contributing to further COVID-19 transmission. This is 
especially critical for young children, who remain ineligible to be 
vaccinated and are increasingly accounting for reported COVID-19 
infections nationwide.
  I want to thank the Infectious Diseases Society of America for their 
support for this bill. Getting vaccinated is a matter of life and 
death, and it is the only option to safely returning to normalcy. I 
look forward to working with my colleagues on this important issue, and 
I urge my fellow Senators to support the U.S. Air Travel Public Safety 
Act.
  Thank you.
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