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Opinion: Reopening U.S-Mexico border next month is great news for families and binational economy

This photo from August 2020 shows how much traffic into San Ysidro from Tijuana dropped off at the height of the pandemic.
This photo from August 2020 shows how much traffic into San Ysidro from Tijuana dropped off at the height of the pandemic because of border restrictions.
(U-T)

The decision to allow vaccinated “nonessential” individuals to finally enter the United States by land and sea should have been done months ago

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Since March 2020, people from Mexico have been unable to cross the border to shop or see friends and family in the U.S. because of travel restrictions designed to keep COVID-19 at bay. The cost of the closure was high. San Ysidro businesses lost more than $644 million in sales and 1,900 jobs within a year.

Now, with vaccinations fueling reopenings in both countries, the Biden administration has finally decided to let international visitors from Mexico into the U.S. for “nonessential” travel, a term that loses its meaning in the context of a parent prevented from seeing a child’s soccer game or graduation. Visitors, smartly, will have to be vaccinated.

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The border should have reopened months ago, but this is a welcome development. U.S. officials had already cleared vaccinated people to enter via international flights next month. COVID-19 cases are declining in Mexico and Canada, and the same vehicle, rail and ferry travel policy will apply to the Canadian border. It will begin next month — with a catch.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers will ask those entering the nation by land or sea about their vaccination status but only ask for proof via a secondary screening process if they believe individuals fit high-risk profiles. There is the potential for abuse with profiling and counterfeit vaccine cards. But if significant problems emerge that can’t be readily fixed, the White House can fine-tune its policy. Come November, our binational region will start to feel a little more like itself, greeting more visitors.

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