The last few months of the COVID-19 pandemic have left people with questions and the government working to keep control as much as possible. On March 11th, President Trump announced a 30-day travel ban to 26 European countries including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

While Europe has not had as many confirmed cases as parts of the world such as China, parts of the continent have become major sources of infection. Italy is the most severe, with over 41,000 (March 30th) as well as Spain with over 11,000 cases.

Later that week on March 14th, Trump extended the list of the countries in the travel ban. Some of these include Britain and Ireland, Croatia, Cyprus, Turkey, and Ukraine. The ban would go into action the following Friday at midnight. 

Since these bans have taken place, airlines have made more and more restrictions regarding commercial travel. With airlines scrambling to make “contingency plans” many travelers are left in distress and uncertainty, who may have made plans months in advance. 

American Airlines recently announced that “customers holding U.S. passports or Green Cards attempting to re-enter the United States from Europe would be rebooked, if necessary, to one of the approved airports.” Other major airlines have since made similar statements, in an attempt to figure out the next step.

While many restrictions have been put in place, there is a small group of people who are not subjected. This includes spouses, parents or siblings of American citizens or permanent residents, members of the U.S. military and their spouses and children. 

It is yet to be known what the long term effects COVID-19 will have, with the daily increase in restrictions.