GOP Senators Urge Biden to Ban Flights from China Citing WHO Warning on Child Pneumonia Spike
• Five Republican senators, led by Marco Rubio, asked Biden to ban travel between the US and China due to a spike in Chinese respiratory illness cases • The senators cited a rise in undiagnosed pneumonia cases in children reported by the WHO • The WHO said the increase appears driven by children contracting pathogens avoided during COVID restrictions • US-China flights have been steadily increasing but are still far below 2019 levels • In January 2020, Trump barred most travelers from China over COVID concerns but did not restrict flights