Page 40 - The Indian EYE 091021
P. 40
ImmIGRATION SEPTEMBER 10, 2021 | The Indian Eye 40
If the uS Does not eradicate
Vaccine Inequality, the requirement
of cOVID Vaccinations for many
Green card applicants Will result
in a De facto Ban
cyruS D. mehta tion meets the criteria or to a foreign national tion or vaccines listed According to re-
for required vaccina- applying for an immi- for emergency use by ports, the Biden ad-
ffective Octo- tions and is a require- grant visa or refugee the World Health Or- ministration also is
ber 1, 2021, with ment for applicants status at a US consul- ganization. In addition developing plans for
Efew exceptions, eligible for the vaccine ate and undergoing a to the three vaccines a COVID-19 vaccine
those applying for regardless of evidence medical examination used in the US, the mandate for almost
permanent residence of immunity, a nega- with a panel physician. WHO lists many other all foreign visitors to
(green card) must be tive COVID-19 test, or With respect to vaccines used outside the United States, with
vaccinated against prior COVID-19 infec- I-485 adjustment ap- the US such as Astra- some exceptions. Note
COVID-19, now clas- tion. The new vaccine plicants, the CDC has Zeneca, Covishield though that proof of
sified as a “Class A requirements apply to stated that the appli- and Covaxin, Sputnik, the vaccination does
inadmissible condi- a foreign national filing cant “must complete Sinopharm and Sino- not exempt interna-
tion,” the Centers for an I-485 application the COVID-19 vaccine vac, among others. Giv- tional travelers from
Disease Control and for adjustment of sta- series and provide doc- en that the US vaccines the preexisting re-
Prevention (CDC) an- tus and completing the umentation of vaccina- are not widely available quirement of present-
nounced. The CDC I-693 medical exam- tion to the civil surgeon in many countries, it is ing proof of a negative
explained that the ination with a designat- in person before com- good news that other Covid-19 test within
COVID-19 vaccina- ed USCIS civil surgeon pletion of the medi- vaccines will be recog- three days of boarding
cal examination.” The nized when intending an international flight
COVID-19 vaccina- immigrants overseas to the US.
tion requirement dif- must be vaccinated As there is a great
fers from previous re- against Covid-19. disparity in vaccina-
quirements in that “the tion programs across
entire vaccine series the world, the man-
(1 or 2 doses depend- Waivers are avail- dating of vaccines for
ing on formulation) able for under both green card applicants
must be completed in and visitors may hinder
addition to the oth- circumstances if the the ability of people to
er routinely required vaccine is not age ap- easily come to the US.
vaccines. COVID-19 According to the NY
vaccinations can now propriate, the vaccine Times vaccine tracker,
be given at any time, is medically contrain- https://www.nytimes.
without regard to the dicated, or the appli- com/interactive/2021/
timing of other vacci- world/covid-vaccina-
nations.” Acceptable cant does not have tions-tracker.html, the
vaccines include Pfiz- UAE has the highest
m of er-BioNTech, Moder- access to one of the percentage of fully vac-
CYRUS D. MEHTA & PARTNERS PLLC na, and Janssen (John- approved vaccines in cinated people within
son & Johnson). its population (76%),
Panel physicians in while the percentage
their home country.
countries outside the applicants may also of fully vaccinated peo-
US may accept vac- apply for an individu- ple in countries such
cines authorized for as India (10%), Sen-
emergency use or ap- al waiver on religious egal (3.5%) and Haiti
proved by the US Food (<0.1%) is abysmally
2 6th Floor or moral grounds.
and Drug Administra- low.
www.TheIndianEYE .com
